Mary Peltola was sworn into office Tuesday in Washington, D.C., as Alaska’s lone House representative, marking a historic milestone as both the first Alaska Native and the first woman to hold the seat.
Peltola, 49, will serve out the remainder of Rep. Don Young’s term. Young, the longest-serving Alaska congressman, died in March of natural causes while returning to Alaska.
“It is the honor of my life to represent Alaska, a place my elders and ancestors have called home for thousands of years. To be clear, I am here to represent all Alaskans, and I will work hard every day to make sure I represent them all,” Peltola said.
Peltola said she will endeavor to continue Young’s legacy of bipartisan partnership.
“I might have a different approach than Don, but you will be hearing about AK and our unique needs,” Peltola said.
Peltola, who is Yup’ik and grew up in Western Alaska villages, is a veteran lawmaker who served 10 years in the Alaska House as Bethel’s representative.
Peltola, along with Republicans Sarah Palin and Nick Begich III and libertarian fishing guide Chris Bye, are running for a full two-year term in the seat during November’s general election. Peltola won the special election held Aug. 16, earning enough votes after Begich was eliminated in the state’s first use of a ranked choice voting system.
While two-thirds of Begich’s votes were reallocated to Palin as voters’ second choice, Peltola held enough of a lead that votes tabulated in her favor kept her in first place.
Peltola named her staff, selecting veteran journalist and energy policy expert Larry Persily as her senior policy adviser and Alex Ortiz, Young’s former chief of staff, to serve as her interim chief of staff.
“I sincerely appreciate Alex agreeing to assist me as I take on my new role and reopen the office,” Peltola said in a Monday news release. “Alaskans and I will benefit from his years of experience and strong relationships both in Washington and back home.”
Ortiz, originally from Ketchikan, has worked in D.C. for a decade, including in the office of former Sen. Ted Stevens.
Peltola named her other staff, including Claire Richardson as interim director of constituent services, Hector Jimenez as her scheduler, and Josh Wilson as interim communications director.
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