As Republicans push to gain control of the House and Senate in the midterm elections, one GOP senator is backing her Democrat friend over multiple Republican candidates, including former Governor Sarah Palin.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) told reporters following an event in Anchorage that she is “so happy to welcome Mary Peltola as our representative for all of Alaska,” according to the Anchorage Daily News. Peltola, a Democrat, won a special election held in August to replace the late Rep. Don Young (R-AK), who died in March after serving as the state’s lone representative for nearly 50 years.

A reporter with the Anchorage Daily News asked the senator if she planned on putting Peltola’s name first on Alaska’s new ranked-choice voting ballot in November. Murkowski responded, “Yeah, I am,” later explaining that “Mary is a friend. … We have been friends for 25 years, and the fact that we’re Republican and Democrat has never interfered with that friendship.”