DW-NOMINATE
Lisa Murkowski is currently one of the most moderate Republicans in terms of DW-NOMINATE scores. According to Voteview.com, which tracks ideology, polarization, and voting records of various politicians, Murkowski, as of the 113th congress, has a NOMINATE score of 0.192. Murkowski's NOMINATE score places her as one of the most moderate Republicans in the chamber. Only one other Republican Senator, Susan Collins of Maine, has a score closer to -1, with a score of 0.088. Murkowski's NOMINATE scores in previous congresses, according to Voteview, have remained stable. Murkowski has consistently held her score of 0.192, as it was also her score in the last 4 congresses.
The stability of Murkowski's NOMINATE scores show the consistency of her ideology in reelection strategies. She seems to feel that the best tactic is to repeat the same platforms and views that won reelection in previous attempts. This comes in spite of the fact that she has been frequently accused of being a "Republican in name only" by critics and websites such as "Conservapedia", a conservative, Christian fundamentalist "encyclopedia".
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PARTY UNITY
Given Murkowski's moderate approach compared to most other Republicans, her party unity score is unsurprisingly low. In the most recent congress, according to Voteview, Murkowski has an appallingly low score of 47.242. By comparison, Senator Mark Begich, Murkowski's Alaskan counterpart, has a score of 94.915. Interestingly, her score was a sudden and drastic drop from her previous party unity score of 59.316 which, while still low, is much more loyal and in union than her current score. Also noteworthy is that while her voting records changed abruptly from the 112th to the 113th congress, her NOMINATE scores have remained identical.
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ADA AND INTEREST GROUP SCORES
Once again, Murkowski's moderate stand on issues is reflected on her scores with both the Americans for Democratic Action and various interest groups. With the ADA, Murkowski scored a 30% on the scale, which was the highest of any other Republican in the Senate, with the exception of Maine's Susan Collins. The ADA's scales are highly polarized, with Democrats frequently scoring in the 80th to 90th percentile, and Republicans generally in the 5th to 15th percentile. With that considered, Murkowski's 30% is much more centered than most other Senators.
Accoring to Votesmart, a site dedicated to researching campaigns, budgets, legislation, and officials, Murkowski's most popular area for interest groups seems to be in the category of "Animals and Wildlife". In the year 2014, she received ratings from 3 wildlife groups, and 2 of them scaled her with a 100% rating. Of these groups was the American Veterinary Medical Association, which aims to "be the trusted leader in protecting, promoting and advancing a strong, unified veterinary profession that meets the needs of society." The other was "Food Policy Action", which has a goal ""to change the national dialogue on food policy by educating the public on how elected officials are voting on these issues". Both of these relate to Alaska's unusual wildlife and fauna, which has launched several controversial issues, such as the hunting of seals, whales and sea lions, which have drawn federal regulations.
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CROSSING PARTY LINES
Out of the many issues in which Murkowski has aligned herself with non-partisan, one of the most outstanding is her left-leaning stance of various social issues. An example of this would be her generally pro-choice position on abortion. In recent years, she has received a 80% ratings from the Campaign for Working Families, and from NARAL Pro-Choice America, and supported the funding of Planned Parenthoods according to Votesmart and political news organization Politico. In 2013, she became only the 3rd Republican Senator to openly endorse same-sex marriages according to Politico, and was an avid skeptic of the Republican party's attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, according to political newspaper organization The Hill.
Murkowki's pro-LGBT stance has generated controversy in terms of party loyalty
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