Lisa Murkowski

In a midterm election that saw Republicans celebrate their own comeback as a party, gaining more than 60 seats — and majority status — in the House, one of the more unusual victories belonged to Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski. Though the GOP incumbent had been jolted when she lost the primary to Tea Party favorite and Sarah Palin-backed Joe Miller, months later Murkowski was triumphant. She managed to defeat both Miller and Democratic candidate Scott McAdams, even without her party's support. In November, she became the first write-in candidate to win a Senate seat since 1954.

• 
• Click to Print

• Find this article at:
• https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2035319_2034985_2034978,00.html