By SUZANNE DOWNING
March 19, 2026 – As Alaska heads toward another US Senate race, former Rep. Mary Peltola is working to reintroduce herself to voters as a champion of responsible resource development.
But her record in Congress tells a far more complicated and contradictory story.
In 2024, Peltola signed on as an original cosponsor of H.R. 6285, the Alaska’s Right to Produce Act, legislation aimed at reversing Biden-era restrictions on oil and gas development in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and reinstating leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. For a state heavily dependent on resource development, it appeared to be a clear signal that Alaska’s lone House Democrat was aligning with pro-development priorities.
Historic day in Alaska: NPR-A lease sale shatters records with $163 million in bids
But behind the scenes, Peltola was telling a different story.
Ahead of the floor vote, she circulated a “Dear Colleague” letter to fellow House Democrats urging them to oppose the very bill she had cosponsored. In the letter, Peltola warned that the legislation carried what she described as “significant unintended consequences,” particularly provisions that would nullify the Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area. She argued that doing so could harm Indigenous communities and the Arctic marine environment, emphasizing the importance of tribal input and environmental protections.
Read her letter here, telling colleagues to vote no on her bill:
Peltola Dear Colleague – Alaska’s Right to Produce
“I support oil and gas development,” she wrote. “However, the unintended consequences of this bill are too significant to allow it to pass. I urge you to vote no on H.R. 6285.”
When the bill finally came to the House floor, Peltola did not vote in favor of her own legislation, and she didn’t vote against it. Instead, she simply voted “present.”
The sequence of cosponsoring the bill, lobbying colleagues to defeat it, and then declining to take a clear position on final passage has become even more critical as Peltola prepares for a Senate run and attempts to position herself as a pragmatic, pro-resource candidate.
The contrast is especially stark in light of this week’s historic NPR-A lease sale, which drew more than $163 million in high bids and signaled renewed industry confidence in Alaska’s energy future. That sale followed years of federal restrictions from the Biden Administration and was made possible through a combination of executive actions and congressional efforts, including work by Alaska’s congressional delegation.
While Sen. Dan Sullivan and Congressman Nick Begich pushed aggressively to restore access and certainty in the NPR-A, efforts widely credited with helping set the stage for the record-breaking sale, Peltola’s actions during her time in Congress point in a different direction.
The pattern shows howPeltola’s moderate messaging in Alaska does not always match her conduct in Washington, DC.
Breaking: NPR-A bids announced, major oil companies show interest in Alaska again, marking a reversal
