October 28, 2026 — Commercial fishing is playing a prominent role in Alaska’s closely watched U.S. Senate race, with salmon declines, trawl bycatch, and the future of the state’s seafood industry continuing to separate Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democratic challenger Mary Peltola as Election Day approaches.
A recent Newsweek report put a national spotlight on fisheries issues that have been building throughout the Alaska campaign. For many voters, questions surrounding fish are closely tied to the state’s economy, food security, and coastal communities.
The differences between the candidates were already on display in September, when Sullivan and Peltola faced off during the 2026 Congressional Candidates Fisheries Forum in Kodiak. The debate covered bycatch, fuel costs, foreign seafood competition, NOAA surveys, Coast Guard resources, and the future of federal fisheries management.
Peltola has made trawl bycatch one of the central fisheries issues of her campaign, drawing a distinction between Alaska’s small and mid-sized fishing operations and what she calls “Lower 48 factory trawlers.”