Murkowski Breaks With GOP, Rejects Election Integrity Bills Backed by Party Leadership

The Alaska Republican said the SAVE Act and MEGA Act improperly federalize elections and would burden states already preparing for Election Day.

By yourNEWS Media Newsroom

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said Tuesday that she will not support two Republican-backed election integrity proposals, arguing that the measures conflict with long-standing conservative opposition to federal control of elections and would place undue strain on state election systems.

In a statement shared publicly on social media, Murkowski said she opposes both the SAVE Act and the MEGA Act, asserting that the U.S. Constitution grants states—not the federal government—the authority to regulate federal elections.

“Once again, I do not support these efforts,” Murkowski wrote in a statement posted on X, explaining that the Constitution clearly gives states the power to determine the “times, places, and manner” of holding elections and that uniform federal mandates from Washington “seldom work in places like Alaska,” according to her post.

Murkowski, who has represented Alaska in the Senate for more than two decades, is widely viewed as one of the Republicans most willing to diverge from party leadership on high-profile votes. She has frequently criticized initiatives she believes expand federal authority at the expense of state and local control.

In her remarks, Murkowski also warned that imposing new nationwide election requirements so close to Election Day could disrupt ongoing preparations by state and local officials.

“Election Day is fast approaching,” she said. “Imposing new federal requirements now, when states are deep into their preparations, would negatively impact election integrity by forcing election officials to scramble to adhere to new policies likely without the necessary resources.”

The SAVE Act and MEGA Act are part of a broader Republican push to standardize certain election procedures nationwide, a move supporters say is necessary to bolster confidence in election outcomes. Murkowski countered that such efforts run contrary to Republican arguments against federalizing elections and risk undermining, rather than strengthening, the administration of voting at the state level.