Humiliation for Kamala Harris as rising star Democrat REJECTS failed presidential candidate's endorsement in upcoming election

By JIMMY MCCLOSKEY, HEAD OF NEWS Published: 13:26, 15 August 2026 | Updated: 13:56, 15 August 2026 An aspiring congresswoman running for a US Senate seat has bluntly rejected an endorsement from failed 2024 presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Mary Peltola, who is competing for one of Alaska's two senate seats in November's midterm elections, distanced herself from a recent email endorsement sent out by Harris. 'Mary isn’t seeking endorsements from anyone from the Lower 48 — her focus is and always will be Alaska,' her spokesperson told The New York Times.  The spokesperson added that Peltola did not approve the message sent out by Harris, part of a fundraising email which said: 'If there’s anyone who can flip Alaska and secure the Senate majority for Democrats — it’s Mary.' Harris lost Alaska by 13 points in the 2024 presidential election.  Her performance there was so bad that Republicans are now using Harris's endorsement of Peltola to try and damage the latter woman. Congressional hopeful Mary Peltola (pictured in Juneau, Alaska, in May) has rejected Kamala Harris's endorsement of her bid to become Alaska's first Democrat senator in 12 years  Nick Puglia, a spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, claimed that Peltola worked 'hand in hand with Kamala Harris to put Alaska last, so it’s no surprise that Harris is backing Peltola.' Puglia was referring to Peltola's prior stint in Congress, as US Representative for Alaska-at-large between 2022 and 2025, when Joe Biden was president and Harris was his deputy.  Rebecca Himschoot, an Alaska state lawmaker elected as an Independent, branded Harris's endorsement of Peltola 'really dumb.' She told The Times: 'She’s riding Mary Peltola’s coattails.  'And she’s not even running for anything that anyone knows of yet, and didn’t do well here to begin with.' Harris is said to have privately hinted that she will run for president again in 2028, although few Democrats welcome the prospect of a repeat of a campaign that handed Donald Trump his second White House term. Harris, pictured in October 2025, is now seen as toxic by Democrats running in competitive races. She failed in her bid to become president in 2024 but has privately hinted that she's considering running again in 2028.  Peltola did not endorse Harris's presidential campaign and has positioned herself as a centrist Democrat, who is campaigning on a platform of 'fish, family and freedom.'  Polls show that Peltola stands a strong chance of becoming Alaska's first Democrat senator since 2014. Sixteen candidates - seven Republican, three Democrats, three Independents, a Libertarian, a Green and a member of the Alaska party - will all compete in the same primary as part of state election rules. The four candidates who win the most seats will then advance to a general election. Ten of the 11 polls forecasting the result have Peltola as a winner, with a New York Times/Siena poll predicting Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan will hold onto his seat. Confusingly, another Republican called Daniel J. Sullivan is running as a Republican for the same seat. Dan S. Sullivan, pictured in Washington DC in 2024, is the incumbent senator who Peltola hopes to unseat. President Trump's unpopular war in Iran could help her do so That has sparked fears among the GOP that flummoxed voters will mix the two men up, and limit Dan S's chance of holding onto his seat.  Alaska leans conservative but its voters have an independent streak.  Republican Lisa Murkowski, the state's other US Senator, backed Peltola in her previous bids for the House of Representatives, despite the two women belonging to rival parties.  Murkowski has backed Dan S. Sullivan for this year's senate race.  President Trump's increasingly unpopular war in Iran is seen as a gift to Peltola's campaign and could ultimately help her flip the seat.  The Daily Mail has contacted Harris for comment on Peltola's rejection of her endorsement.