Democrats lead Republican opponents in Alaska, Texas and Ohio, according to New York Times/Siena polling released October 3 across five closely watched Senate contests. The findings place three GOP-held seats within Democratic reach as voters prepare to determine control of the Senate in November. Mary Peltola, James Talarico and Sherrod Brown would each gain a seat for their party if the results were replicated on Election Day.
Newsweek contacted the Republican and Democratic candidates for every Senate campaign polled via email for further comment. The emerging map gives Democrats several possible routes through states with sharply different electorates, from heavily urban Texas to sparsely populated Alaska. Yet two advantages fall inside the polls’ margins of sampling error, making the figures evidence of competitive races rather than certain victories.
Republicans currently hold a 53-47 Senate majority, so Democrats must protect every seat they hold and gain four Republican-held seats for outright control. That makes contests in Alaska, Iowa, Ohio and Texas potential building blocks of a majority, rather than isolated state races; a 50-50 split would leave Republicans with effective control through Vice President JD Vance’s tie-breaking vote. Peltola has the largest Democratic lead among the races.
She receives 50 percent against Republican Senator Dan Sullivan’s 43 percent in Alaska. That seven-point gap exceeds the survey’s plus or minus 5.1-point margin of sampling error. The poll questioned 504 likely voters from September 24 to October 1, using English-language telephone interviews and one completed online response after a text invitation.
Peltola still describes herself through fish camp and family life: she says she grew up catching salmon with her father on the Kuskokwim and later raised seven children while spending summers preparing fish. Fishing runs through Alaska’s economy and the traditions and daily lives of its Indigenous communities. Both candidates have therefore sought to make it an important campaign issue in this race.
At a September fisheries debate held by the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce, Peltola said: “I’m the only candidate on this stage who’s an Alaskan fisherman. Fish is in my blood, earned over generations on the water.” Meanwhile, Sullivan recently joined in one of Alaska’s lighter annual rituals, Fat Bear Week competition, throwing his support behind reigning champion 'Chunk', and writing: “May the fattest bear win!” Peltola’s position gives Democrats an opening in a state where personality and candidate appeal can matter alongside party identification. For Alaskans, the choice is also familiar: a former Democratic representative against a sitting Republican senator.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
