WASHINGTON — Former Alaska Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola has faced allegations of volatile behavior in the workplace, including the use of offensive slurs and an incident in which she allegedly shoved a male staffer, according to a New York Times report citing nine former aides.
Peltola spent roughly two and a half years in the House after winning a 2022 special election to succeed the late Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska. She is now taking on Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in a closely watched contest that could help shape control of Congress.
The reported physical confrontation occurred on Feb. 7, 2024, when Peltola became frustrated while searching for a document and allegedly pushed a male aide in the chest, according to one witness and two people who were later briefed on the episode.
The staff member subsequently departed Peltola’s office.
The incident took place on the birthday of Peltola’s late husband, Eugene, who died in a plane crash in September 2023.
Her campaign also pointed to the death of Peltola’s mother around the same period.
“At the time of their passing, Mary was parenting kids through their own grief, serving full-time in the US House of Representatives thousands of miles from home, and running a competitive [House] re-election campaign — all while shouldering the enormous burden of grief,” spokesperson Harry Child said.
Child said Peltola, like anyone enduring multiple tragedies within a short period, sometimes struggled emotionally. He accused former aides of distorting or fabricating incidents from what he described as the most difficult chapter of her life and portraying them as evidence of a broader pattern.
He further maintained that Peltola treated employees “with respect and care.” That defense came as the lawmaker carried out a major staff overhaul before the Aug. 18 Senate primary, removing or reassigning her campaign manager, chief of staff and two longtime political consultants.
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The Times reported that the changes followed frustration over campaign operations. In messages reviewed by the newspaper, Peltola criticized the effort in blunt, capitalized language, including one complaint that read, “OUR SIGN GAME IS F–KED.”
Four former aides alleged that Peltola repeatedly used an anti-gay slur, including when speaking about members of her own staff. Her campaign has strongly rejected that accusation.
The campaign did acknowledge that Peltola used the word “retard” in a text message earlier this year. The message came after criticism over a selfie she took with a commercial fishing executive, despite her opposition to large-scale trawling operations.
“F–k that retard,” Peltola wrote in the message. Her campaign said she regrets the language.
Former staffers also characterized Peltola as unforgiving, saying she could sever relationships completely after believing she had been insulted or slighted.
During her unsuccessful 2024 House reelection campaign, she reportedly lashed out at Planned Parenthood after the organization criticized her vote for a defense bill containing provisions opposed by abortion-rights supporters.
“I hope Planned Parenthood knows that if we don’t win it’s more their loss than ours. F–K THOSE B—S,” she wrote in one text cited by the report.
Former aides also described a lighter, if unusual, request: while Peltola was traveling for work, she asked staffers to feed live crickets to her family’s pet chameleon, Meatball.
Polling shows Peltola and Sullivan in a competitive race, with the outcome complicated by Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system and two other candidates running under the Republican label. One of them is retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan, who is not related to or the same person as Sen. Dan S. Sullivan.
