Sen. Lisa Murkowski is out to prove her centrist brand of politics and willingness to buck the party line still has a place in today’s Republican Party.
Ms. Murkowski has her sights set on winning a fourth full term in the Senate where she has developed a reputation for swimming against the partisan tide — earning praise from advocates of bipartisanship, and spite from former President Donald Trump and party hard-liners, who are backing primary challenger Kelly Tshibaka.
The 65-year-old was in a similar position in 2010 when a Tea Party-backed rival toppled her in the primary — only to have her turn around and launch a successful write-in bid as an independent in the general election.