The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) announced Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom (R – Alaska) as one of 25 candidates for their 2024 Young Guns program. According to a press release:

The Young Gun program mentors and supports candidates in races across the country and works to provide them with the necessary tools to run successful, winning campaigns against their Democratic opponents. The program requires candidates to work towards specific goals and meet benchmarks throughout the election cycle to ensure their campaigns remain competitive, well-funded and communicative within their districts.

Dahlstrom is one of two Republicans challenging Representative Mary Peltola (D – Alaska) for Alaska’s sole U.S. House seat. The other is Republican Nick Begich. While there are 12 candidates running for the seat in the upcoming primary, under Alaska’s new voting system only four will advance to the November general election. Peltola, Dahlstrom, and Begich are sure to be three of the four.

Begich has pledged to withdraw after the primary if he receives fewer votes than Dahlstrom. But Dahlstrom has not reciprocated. If they both stay in the race, they will need to spend resources convincing voters to rank them one or two. In 2022, enough of Begich’s voters either did not rank Republican Sarah Palin second or voted for Peltola second. This resulted in Peltola winning the race.

Regarding the announcement, NRCC Chairman Richard Hudson said, “Extreme House Democrats’ border, crime and cost of living crises wrecked Americans’ safety and security.” Fortunately, these Republican candidates are already well on their way to running winning campaigns that will grow our House majority in November.”

Alaska’s sole U.S. House race is one of the key congressional races the NRCC has identified. They are spending millions on media buys in Alaska on the race. Dahlstrom will now directly benefit from the money they are spending.

Dahlstrom provided the following comment on the announcement, “It’s time to get our country back on track, which is why I am honored to be named to NRCC’s Young Guns Program in my race to defeat liberal Mary Peltola. I have a proven record of fighting for Alaskans and winning, and that’s exactly what I will do when I get to Washington, D.C. Peltola has voted in lockstep with the Biden-Harris administration’s anti-Alaska agenda. This November, we have an opportunity to vote for change.”

The primary will be held on August 20. Absentee and early voting starts on August 5.