Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has indicated she is not married to the Republican label, but said she has never renounced it.
Murkowski, who made the remark at a No Labels Group meeting, said she is “more of a Ronald Reagan Republican than a Trump Republican. And… well, you're not really a Republican at all. “There may be some,” she pointed out.
But the senator said, “Call me whatever you want…I'm not bound by a label. I'd rather have no label.”
Murkowski said he wants to be known as someone who “regardless of party affiliation, tries to do the right thing for this country and the people I serve.”
Anti-Trump Republican Alaska senator doesn't deny the idea of independence
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) speaks at a press conference about rising gas prices at the U.S. Capitol on May 18, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
“I actually feel more comfortable with that identity as a Republican than I do as a member of the party,” she said.
But in subsequent remarks, Markwoski said he never shed the Republican label.
“I’m still a Republican,” she said, “and I’ve never abandoned the party label.”
DeSantis welcomes Florida lawmaker to Republican Party after abandoning Democratic Party
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) speaks during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on special diabetes programs on July 11, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Countess Jemal/Getty Images for JDRF)
President-elect Trump called on a crowd in Alaska in 2022 to “get rid of horrible RINO Sen. Lisa Murkowski,” using an acronym that stands for “Republican in Name Only.”
In late 2002, Frank Murkowski, who had just left the U.S. Senate to become governor, appointed his daughter Lisa Murkowski to fill the vacancy in the Senate.
Since then, she has won multiple elections for the Senate, including in 2022 when she defeated Trump-backed challenger Kelly Tshibaka.
President Trump backs Murkowski's primary candidate, Kelly Tshibaka
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) arrives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on November 13th to campaign for Senate Republican leadership. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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Earlier this year, Murkowski endorsed former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley in the Republican presidential primary.
