The Lessor of Two (Three?) Evils
In the Primary Election on August 20th, Alaska has the opportunity to pick a Republican to run against Democrat Mary Peltola for our Congressional seat. You would think that being a red state, the Republican candidate should be a heavy favorite going into the November General election. However, since neither of the Republicans is an inspiring candidate, Alaskans have a tough choice to make before election day.
There are two Republicans who have a realistic shot at winning the Republican Primary: Nancy Dahlstrom and Nick Begich.
While three local voter groups have recently endorsed Nick Begich, Donald Trump has endorsed Nancy Dahlstrom for Congress. This endorsement was probably not a reflection of Dahlstrom’s qualifications, so much as it was a criticism of Nick Begich. Begich’s actions in 2022 cost Republicans a seat in Congress.
In 2022 Nick Begich got 7,600 fewer votes in the primary election than Sarah Palin and in a normal primary, Begich would have lost, and Palin would have gone to the general election facing the Democrat Mary Peltola. Unfortunately, in 2022 because Alaska was using the confusing Ranked Choice Voting system, Begich was allowed to stay in the race after losing the primary.
By stubbornly fighting a bitter campaign with Palin right up to the general election, Begich alienated Republican voters, splitting the vote and giving the race to Peltola. Even though more people voted for a Republican than a Democrat in the General Election, thanks to the miracle of RCV, Peltola won the seat.
That is why Trump endorsed Dahlstrom. Begich should have been smart enough to concede after the 2022 primary. Trump recognized that Begich placed his personal goals ahead of what was best for the state and the Republican party. By remaining in the race, Mark Begich sabotaged Palin’s chances of defeating Mary Peltola, giving Peltola an unearned victory. Trump recognizes Begich’s mistake, so Trump has backed Dahlstrom.
Nick Begich seems like a nice guy when you talk to him, but it isn’t like he has a ton of experience in politics. The fact is he has never held an elected office at all. The 2022 campaign he lost to Peltola is the only political campaign he has ever run in.
Then again Dahlstrom also has a very modest resume. She has only been Lt. Governor for the past year and a half. Before that, she worked as an executive branch administrator for 4 years. Her only experience in elected office was in the state house, where she got her first seat after being appointed to fill Lisa Murkowski’s vacancy when Lisa was appointed to the US Senate in a nepotism hiring. As unpopular as Lisa Murkowski is with conservative Alaskans, I’m not sure that I would brag about that part of my resume if I were Dahlstrom.
Dahlstrom is relying on her experience as Lt. Governor to get elected. She has what sounds like a prestigious-sounding title, but it doesn’t have many important duties. Other than ceremonial acts like regulating the use of the state seal and swearing in new members in the state legislature, the Alaska Lt. Governor has only one important job; supervising the Alaska Division of Elections. Critics could even say in that role, Nancy Dahlstrom has failed miserably.
Ever since the election of 2020, there have been huge questions about the integrity of our elections at the state and federal levels. These are issues that Dahlstrom could have addressed as Lt. Governor. These issues include.
Alaska’s voter rolls have 106% more registered voters than we have eligible adults living here, which is a physical impossibility. The voter rolls are dirty and ripe for fraud; something should have been done to clean them long ago.
The Dominion machines that we use to count our votes are questionable. These machines have been proven susceptible to fraud in other states because they are connected to the internet and can be accessed by hackers. There is no adequate system in place to ensure that Alaska’s Dominion machines are counting the votes accurately.
In the 2020 presidential election, it took 8 days for Alaska to count the votes and announce the winner of the election, creating doubt in the public about how legitimate our elections are.
Given the importance of election integrity and her duty to uphold it, a strong leader would have publicly addressed these issues, but Dahlstrom did nothing when she had the chance.
So, Alaska is faced with a choice of who to vote to send to Congress. I wish we had a bold dynamic conservative leader running this year, someone like Marjorie Taylor Greene or Matt Gaetz, but there isn’t any. Alaska is faced with a choice between the lesser of three evils. We could vote for a left wing enabler, Democrat Mary Peltola. Voting for her is like voting for Hakeem Jefferies or Nancy Pelosi. I would rather chew off my arm first.
As far as our Republican choice goes, both candidates seem like nice people, but this isn’t a contest to elect a choir leader at church. Neither Begich nor Dahlstrom have proven they are worthy of being Alaska’s representative in Congress, but we must pick one of them. Alaska deserves a strong fighter but is left with a choice between a self-promoter and a weak apparatchik.
I don’t have a dog in this fight and haven’t yet decided who to vote for in the August primary. I will hold my nose and rank the red. However the primary election turns out, I hope the Republicans get smart this year. They should pull both Dahlstrom and Begich aside as soon as possible and get them to publicly pledge that whoever wins the primary election will be the official candidate, with the other candidate promising to drop out and supporting the primary winner. Doing so would leave only one Republican running against the liberal Democrat Mary Peltola in the General election and should result in Peltola’s defeat.
This is what should be done, but I have no confidence that the Republicans will do the wise thing. Former US Senator Alan Simpson said that the Democrats are the evil party, and the Republicans are the stupid party. I hope that just for once the Republicans will prove Simpson wrong.
Citations:
https://patriots.win/p/17tLB1neuV/james-is-correct/c
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Scott, I wish we had the chance to vote for a real fighter in this election. Someone who loves Alaska and will fight for issues important to our state back in DC, like a young Wally Hickel. Unfortunately, we have the choices we have and neither of them inspires confidence.
Nick Begich promised early in his campaign to step aside IF he came in second to Dahlstrum. He reiterated the same at our district convention. Then at the AK Republican State Convention in April Nick was most definitely the man of choice. The excitement and support was energy that filled the dining room of several hundred Republicans from all over the State. He has grown in public statue and knowledge regarding his job as Representative. Nick has made several trips to Washington DC in the past becoming more acquainted. Nancy Dahlstrum failure to address the voting system or even lend a hand fighting the RCV, has been apparent. Right now her main cheering squad is the group that was backing Nikki Haley. Vote Red, Rank Red and keep Mary home in Alaska.