Anchorage pastor Matt Schultz, a Democrat, will challenge Republican Begich in U.S. House race

Iris Samuels, Anchorage Daily News on Oct 20, 2025

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Rev. Matt Schultz, a pastor at Anchorage First Presbyterian Church, announced Monday that he is running for Alaska's U.S. House seat.

The seat is currently held by Republican Rep. Nick Begich, who in 2024 unseated Democrat Mary Peltola.

Schultz, a Democrat, said he decided to run to improve access to health care and address the high cost of living, among other issues.

"A lot of politicians have spent time demonizing the government and saying how terrible it is, and we gotta kill it with a chainsaw. But when it gets down to it, government is people, and it's how we can pull together to do wonderful things like feed people who need help, provide health care to more people in a better way, build highways," Schultz said in an interview.

Schultz, who was raised in rural New York, moved to Alaska in 1997. As a pastor, he has advocated for progressive causes, including alleviating homelessness in Anchorage, addressing food insecurity and raising the minimum wage. He has repeatedly denounced President Donald Trump's agenda.

But Schultz said he would not focus on Trump in his campaign.

"I'm running for Alaskans, and I'm not running against Donald Trump," Schultz said. "I'm going to be focused on Nick Begich and the seat that Alaska has in the U.S. House of Representatives."

Begich was born in Alaska, raised by his maternal grandparents in Florida, and returned to the state as an adult. He is a member of an extended family that includes prominent Alaska Democrats. His uncle Tom Begich is running for governor as a Democrat. His uncle Mark Begich is a former Democratic U.S. senator.

In Congress, Rep. Begich has closely aligned himself with Trump and his agenda, including by supporting the president's efforts to slash federal spending.

Schultz criticized Begich for his votes in favor of the budget reconciliation bill that was passed this year, cutting hundreds of millions of dollars in Medicaid funding. He also criticized Begich's limited availability for town halls and other constituent engagement.

Schultz, who has called Anchorage home for all the years he has lived in Alaska, said he planned to travel across the state as part of the campaign.

"I'm going to take the planes out and boats out to get to as many different parts of Alaska as I can," Schultz said.

Begich — a businessman with millions of dollars to his name — has spent the past few months fundraising. As of last month, he had $1.5 million in his campaign account.

Fundraising to mount a campaign against Begich will be "an uphill climb," Schultz said. "But we love climbing up hills here."