News · Politics & Accountability · Anchorage, Alaska
Alaska Senate candidate Mary Peltola and family hurt in car crash, campaign says
Mary Peltola, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Alaska, and members of her family sustained minor injuries Friday night when another vehicle struck the car they were riding in, according to her campaign, as reported by KTUU through Gray News and carried by Dakota News Now, Cleveland 19, WOWT and WCAX.
The campaign said the family was traveling to the Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Banquet, where Peltola had a campaign appearance scheduled. Those injured required medical care, the campaign said. The report did not identify the driver of the other vehicle or describe where the collision happened.
The crash has pushed back the start of what the campaign calls its "Alaska Always Tour," a series of eight stops planned for the final week before Election Day, according to the Gray News report.
Campaign manager Cheryl Bruce said medical professionals recommended that Peltola postpone events set for Sunday and Monday to allow time to recover. Bruce said Peltola was disappointed by the delay and is "eager to get back on the campaign trail to speak directly with Alaskans," according to the report.
Peltola, an Alaska Native, previously served in Congress. She is running against Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan. If she wins, she would be the first Democrat in nearly 20 years to represent Alaska in the Senate, the outlets reported.
The race has also drawn attention from the White House. On Friday, President Donald Trump said he had directed his administration to file a lawsuit seeking to block certification of the results if Sullivan loses, according to the report. The legal challenge points to possible voter confusion involving another candidate who appears on the state's ranked-choice ballot under the name Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.
The report did not say when Peltola expects to resume campaigning after the postponed Sunday and Monday events. The Associated Press contributed to the Gray News story.
Compiled by True News from reporting by Dakota News Now, Cleveland 19, WOWT and WCAX. Each outlet's original story is linked below.
Sources
- Alaska’s Democratic Senate candidate suffers minor injuries in car crash, campaign says (Dakota News Now)
- Alaska’s Democratic Senate candidate suffers minor injuries in car crash, campaign says (Cleveland 19)
- Alaska’s Democratic Senate candidate suffers minor injuries in car crash, campaign says (WOWT)
- Alaska’s Democratic Senate candidate suffers minor injuries in car crash, campaign says (WCAX)
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