Murkowski Endorses Kreiss-Tomkins as Midterm Candidates Court Rival Party Voters
Former GOP governors and state senators are backing Democratic Senate and gubernatorial candidates, though experts caution that crossover voting usually affects only small margins.
By Mariam Saleh ·
Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski endorsed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins in Alaska on Tuesday. Her move marks one of several high-profile instances where midterm candidates are actively seeking support from voters and officials in the opposing party.
The strategy extends to the Senate races in Kansas and Texas. In Kansas, former Republican governors Bill Graves and Mike Hayden announced their backing for Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton in September and October, respectively. In Texas, the campaign for Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico reported that more than two dozen former GOP officials have joined its endorsement list.
Kel Seliger, a former Republican state senator, joined Talarico’s campaign this week rather than supporting Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton. Seliger served with both candidates and said he believes Talarico will be honest and direct. He noted that while he may disagree with some of the Democratic Party’s beliefs, he thinks Talarico’s actions will benefit Texas rather than serving the interests of Elon Musk.
Republican officials acknowledge the trend. Natalie Baldassarre, the national press secretary for the Republican National Committee, pointed to races in Michigan and Texas where crossover support is expected. She cited the coalition “Democrats for Mike Rogers” in Michigan as an example of Democrats potentially voting for a Republican candidate against Abdul El-Sayed.
Joshua Blank, the research director for the Texas Politics Project, said that cross-party voting usually does not shift election outcomes by large amounts. He described the effect as idiosyncratic behavior among a small share of the electorate rather than a mass movement of Republicans voting for Democrats or vice versa.
Blank added that if the races remain close, this small share of crossover voters could determine the winner. Recent polling indicates that several midterm contests have tightened, with some races statistically tied as election day approaches.
