By SUZANNE DOWNING
April 24, 2026 – Federal campaign finance data analyzed by Open Secrets shows that Alaska state government employees have contributed far more to Democratic candidates and political committees than to Republicans in recent election cycles, with the disparity especially pronounced in 2024.
The figures come from the Federal Election Commission and are compiled and analyzed by OpenSecrets, which aggregates itemized individual contributions of $200 or more based on donor-reported employer information.
For the 2024 federal election cycle, OpenSecrets data shows that individuals listing “State of Alaska” as their employer gave a total of about $264,000 in tracked contributions.
Of the roughly $192,000 that went directly to candidates, about $146,000, or 77.8%, was directed to Democratic candidates and party committees, compared to about $41,700, or 22.2%, to Republicans. Contributions to Democrats were about 3.5 times higher than those to Republicans.
The top recipients reflect that imbalance. Among Democrats, State workers gave Kamala Harris nearly $70,000, while Alaska’s former US House member, Mary Peltola-D, received more than $38,000 from state employees. Other Democratic beneficiaries included the state Democratic party organization and national Democratic Party committees.
On the Republican side, former President Donald Trump received just under $21,000 from this government donor group, followed by Alaska Republican candidates such as Nick Begich III, Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, and US Sen. Dan Sullivan, all of whom received significantly smaller totals.
The “State of Alaska” employer category, as standardized by OpenSecrets, includes a wide range of state government workers, such as employees of the Department of Transportation, Alaska Marine Highway System, and Department of Law. It does not include municipal workers, University of Alaska employees, or other public-sector entities categorized separately in federal filings.
The trend appears consistent over time. While earlier cycles, such as 2014, involved much smaller total contributions, available data similarly shows a Democratic advantage among donors identifying as state employees. In recent years, there is no indication in the FEC-based summaries that Republican candidates have outraised Democrats within this specific donor group.
The pattern also stands out when compared to Alaska’s broader donor base. While overall political giving in Alaska has been more closely divided between parties, the subset of donors listing “State of Alaska” as their employer shows a significantly stronger tilt toward Democrats.
The data reflects only federal races, such as presidential, US Senate, and US House, and does not include contributions to state or local candidates, which are reported separately to the Alaska Public Offices Commission.
In addition, the figures rely on self-reported employer information, which does vary in how it is listed, though OpenSecrets applies standardization to group similar entries.
Unitemized donations under $200 are also excluded from the dataset, meaning the totals represent only a portion of overall political giving.
