US primaries: Donald Trump critics Liz Cheney, Lisa Murkowski face re-election

Liz Cheney and Lisa Murkowski, members of the Republican party, are up for re-election in the upcoming primaries on August 16, 2022. The lawmakers have fiercely criticised former US President Donald Trump, who has been the kingmaker in this election season.

Liz Cheney, a Congresswoman from Wyoming, has been the vice president of the January 6th Committee, which has been charged with investigating Trump’s role in last year’s Capitol riots.

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Lisa Murkowski, a Senator from Alaska, has been under the GOP’s radar since late 2020. She was censured by Alaska’s Republican Party for voting to impeach Trump and supporting Interior Secretary Deb Haaland’s nomination.

Liz Cheney’s top competitor in the primary election will be Harriet Hageman, who has been endorsed by Donald Trump. Wyoming is a Republican stronghold, delivering Trump his strongest victory of any state in the 2020 campaign. Liz Cheney’s involvement in the January 6 probe is likely to be a disadvantage. 

Lisa Murkowski, however, enters Alaska’s primary elections with an upper hand. In addition to the incumbent’s advantage, Murkowski’s re-election bid is also likely to be facilitated by the state’s voting rules.

Winner-take-all party primaries, like the one Cheney is facing, have been replaced by a voter-approved process in which all candidates are listed together. The four who get the most votes, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election in which ranked voting will be used.

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Murkowski has 18 challengers in her primary, the most prominent being Republican Kelly Tshibaka, whom Trump has endorsed. The Alaska Democratic Party, meanwhile, has endorsed Pat Chesbro, a retired educator.

The Murkowski family has been dominant in Alaska politics for decades. The US Senate seat was first won by Lisa Murkowski‘s father Frank. The Republican then nominated Lisa for the Senate seat after he became governor in 2002. Lisa Murkowski has held on to the seat ever since.