Lisa Murkowski has made a career out of frustrating the Republican base, and now she’s back at it—once again hinting that she might leave the GOP and go independent. To anyone who has been paying attention, this isn’t shocking. It’s just more of the same from a senator whose political survival depends on fooling enough people for long enough to get through the next election. And thanks to Alaska’s ranked-choice voting scheme, she’s been able to do exactly that—skate by without ever facing real accountability from the voters she claims to represent.
Murkowski’s latest round of political posturing came during a left-wing podcast, where she openly mused about ditching the Republican Party and possibly even caucusing with the Democrats—if the conditions are right.
“There may be that possibility,” she said when asked about switching teams if it meant passing more bills.
She quickly added that she doesn’t find the Democrats much better than the GOP, but that fig leaf doesn’t change the bigger picture. This wasn’t about ideology. It was about Murkowski signaling, once again, that she’s available to the highest bidder.
And Democrats like to bid very high. In 2001, Democrats successfully bribed Vermont Senator Jim Jeffords to leave the GOP, become an independent, and caucus with the Democrats, handing their party the majority in the Senate. Thankfully, Republicans have a 53-seat majority in the Senate right now, meaning that, if she did become an independent and caucus with the Democrats, it would leave the GOP with a 52-48 majority.
Is anyone shocked she’s considering such a move? I’m not. She’s spent the better part of her career siding with Democrats on major issues—from Obamacare to abortion to Trump’s impeachment—while still enjoying the benefits of a Republican label. Her brand is “moderate,” which in Washington just means someone who votes like a Democrat but keeps enough distance to pretend otherwise when it’s politically convenient.
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What’s really propping up Murkowski isn’t her supposed independence or her “pragmatism”—it’s Alaska’s disastrous ranked-choice voting system. It’s a rigged game designed to protect incumbents and muddy the waters for conservative challengers. Murkowski’s coalition isn’t a broad base of support—it’s a carefully balanced mix of liberal voters, disaffected moderates, and Republicans she’s earned loyalty from to push her over the finish line. It’s a formula that’s worked for her, and she knows it. Had it not been for ranked-choice voting in 2022, she likely would have lost.
That’s why the 2026 effort to repeal ranked-choice voting is so important. Last time, the campaign nearly succeeded, despite being outspent more than ten-to-one by outside groups desperate to keep the system in place. Without that system shielding her, a solid conservative would have a clearer shot in a traditional primary where turning out the Republican base is enough to win.
Murkowski is up for re-election in 2028, and make no mistake—she’s watching the political winds closely. If the ranked-choice system survives, so will her career as a thorn in the side of the Republican Party. If it falls, she might finally have to stand on her record—and that’s a test she knows she can’t pass.
Until then, Lisa Murkowski remains the problem that won’t go away.
