President Trump flew to Wasilla, Alaska, on Tuesday to rally for Sen. Dan Sullivan, three weeks before the Nov. 3 midterms. He used the stage to pardon two Anchorage mechanics, announce a gas deal with Taiwan, and call for an end to Alaska’s ranked-choice voting.
The trip is a sign of how much is riding on Alaska. Republicans want to keep control of the Senate, and Sullivan’s seat is now one Democrats think they can take.
🔥 WOW! At 3AM ET President Trump ARRIVED in Las Vegas after his Alaska rally This man worked at the White House in the morning, flew cross country to Alaska, spoke for well over an hour, and will soon head to ARIZONA and MONTANA before DC tonight No other president does this for a midterm. 🇺🇸
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 14, 2026
A packed hockey arena in the Mat-Su Valley
The rally was held at the Curtis D. Menard Memorial Sports Center, a Wasilla arena that holds up to 3,500 people, the Alaska Beacon reported. Some supporters were camped out at the shuttle lot by 3:45 a.m., hours before the first buses ran.
The Associated Press reported that Trump took the stage nearly an hour late, just after 4:20 p.m. local time. He spoke for close to 90 minutes and closed, as usual, by dancing to “YMCA.”
The visit came a week after Vice President JD Vance campaigned in Fairbanks for Sullivan and Rep. Nick Begich. The Alaska Landmine reported that Trump is also scheduled to rally in Montana, Arizona and Georgia later this week.
Pardons for two small-business owners
The most striking moment was a pair of pardons. According to the AP, Trump pardoned Zachary Czubak and Patrick Fleming, who co-owned Arm Rippin Toys, an Anchorage vehicle shop.
The two pleaded guilty in 2022 to Clean Air Act violations. Federal prosecutors had accused them of pulling emissions-control equipment off vehicles. A third Alaskan in a similar case, Mackenzie “Mac” Spurlock of Wasilla, was pardoned earlier this year, the AP said.
Whatever one thinks of federal emissions rules, these were small-shop owners working on trucks, not violent criminals.
A gas line, broadband and the Permanent Fund
Trump brought Alaska a major energy announcement. He told the crowd that Taiwan has agreed to buy 30% of the gas from the planned Alaska pipeline for 20 years and to invest more than $4 billion. “One of the biggest deals ever made,” he called it, according to the AP. Taiwan has not yet publicly confirmed the terms.
The Taiwan deal comes on top of a $54 billion South Korean investment in the same project that Trump has already announced. Long-term buyers are what a project this size needs to get built, and they mean Alaska gas going to American allies.
Trump’s Cabinet brought news of its own. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced the commission will vote on another $162 million for high-speed internet in Alaska and pledged to work with Sullivan on “getting every single person in Alaska connected to high-speed internet.” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Trump’s energy policies could help “double” the Alaska Permanent Fund…
“Scam” voting and a second Dan Sullivan
Trump called Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system a “scam” and urged voters to repeal it. Alaskans will vote on repeal again in November, after narrowly rejecting it in 2024.
He also took aim at a second Dan Sullivan on the ballot, a Petersburg man running with no party label. “They found a guy named Dan Sullivan, they put him up to get things a little confused,” Trump said, according to the AP.
For governor, Trump endorsed Republican Bernadette Wilson. She finished third in the August primary with about 10%, but was the top Republican. Democrats have not won Alaska’s governorship since 1998.
A tight race on paper
Sullivan is seeking a third term against Democrat Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman. In the Aug. 18 primary, Peltola took 49.5% to Sullivan’s 41.4%, according to the Alaska Beacon.
Polls since then are mixed, the Alaska Landmine reported, with some showing Peltola ahead and others giving Sullivan a narrow lead. Trump carried Alaska by 13 points in 2024.
The money is pouring in. Peltola’s campaign says it raised $17 million in the third quarter. A Democratic super PAC, Senate Majority PAC, announced a $3.5 million ad buy against Sullivan. Sullivan launched a $1 million statewide ad campaign tying Peltola to Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer.
Sullivan argued that Peltola would undercut oil and gas development. Peltola, who supports the Willow oil project, says she would put “Alaska first.”
Alaska Democratic Party chair Eric Croft told reporters the visit showed Republicans are worried, calling the choice of Wasilla a sign of desperation.
The bottom line
Trump went to one of the most conservative corners of Alaska to fire up the base, and he gave them reasons to show up: energy jobs, a gas line with foreign buyers lined up, and faster internet for remote towns.
The pardons said the most. Two shop owners were turned into federal criminals for working on trucks. That is the kind of overreach that makes ordinary Alaskans distrust Washington, and Trump made a point of undoing it in front of their neighbors.
Alaska’s Senate seat may decide whether this agenda keeps moving in 2027. Trump has told supporters to “pretend I’m on the ballot.” In Wasilla, he showed what that means.