Anybody hoping to throw their hat in the ring to be Alaska’s next governor, senator, congressman or state legislator is running out of time. The deadline to file to run for office is 5 p.m. Monday.
There are already 20 candidates running for governor and dozens more seeking other state and federal offices.
Here are three things to watch as the deadline approaches.
1. Late, surprise entrants
There have been a few surprise announcements in recent days. Former Gov. Bill Walker filed paperwork Thursday and says he’d “most likely” join the race for governor.
U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan also has a new challenger: a Petersburg teacher who, in a fun twist, is also named Dan Sullivan.
And there was yet another entry into the governor’s race Friday as former state legislator Lesil McGuire filed a letter of intent, bringing the field of candidates to 20. McGuire spent 16 years representing Anchorage in the House and Senate and in 2024 chaired the No on 2 campaign opposing the repeal of open primaries and ranked choice voting.
In a phone interview, McGuire said she’d like to build a better relationship between the Legislature and the governor.
“I don't approach leadership from a partisan point of view,” she said. “I approach it from a people point of view and a problems and solutions point of view.”
McGuire served as a Republican in the state Legislature, and she’s still registered with the GOP. However, McGuire said she has concerns about the current direction of the party and hasn’t decided whether to change her party affiliation before officially filing to run on Monday.
McGuire does have a running mate, though: Elizabeth Rexford, registered as undeclared, who most recently worked as a legislative staffer for a Fairbanks Republican House member.
2. Running mates
Before the 5 p.m. Monday deadline, gubernatorial candidates have to indicate who’ll run alongside them for lieutenant governor.
Finding someone to put their life on hold to run for a relatively low-profile office where the pay is about $140,000 a year is no small feat, said first-time Republican gubernatorial candidate and Anchorage podiatrist Matt Heilala.
“I heard it from probably three candidates that it would be a big pay cut for them to become a lieutenant governor here,” Heilala said in an interview Friday.
Heilala did eventually find a running mate in former Wasilla Republican Rep. Jesse Sumner. He filed paperwork to make that official on Friday, he said.
Heilala said he was looking for someone younger than him — 30s or 40s — and said Sumner’s experience in government and the construction industry is an asset.
“I have not known him long, but he's a perfect fit,” Heialala said.
Several other candidates have also settled on running mates in recent days.
Republican former Revenue Commissioner Adam Crum picked Bob Craig, a former VA hospital front desk clerk who was later CEO of an Anchorage cardiology practice.
In an interview, Crum said he would task Craig with leading a cost-cutting effort similar to Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.
“He's a great guy when it comes to leadership skills, organization, and process, understanding government function, and that's the key thing in a lieutenant governor,” Crum said.
And Democratic Anchorage Sen. Matt Claman picked Sarah Skeel, the chief administrator for Providence Alaska Medical Center.
“Sarah Skeel is just a very bright, talented, capable woman with really strong and vast experience in the healthcare field,” Claman said. “I’m really pleased to have her part of the team”
Matanuska-Susitna Borough Mayor Edna DeVries, a Republican, named Talkeeta physician George Hightower as her would-be No. 2.
Activist Meda DeWitt, running as an independent, announced her pick for lieutenant governor as well: educator and Navy veteran Chris Steere. In a news release, DeWitt’s campaign said it was the “first all-Native ticket.” DeWitt is Tlingit from Wrangell, and Steere, of Unalakleet, is Iñupiaq.
Democratic former state House Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins’ campaign said by email they’re planning to announce his running mate on Monday.
Even then, some prominent candidates do not have someone beside them on the ticket: notably Republicans Treg Taylor, the former attorney general, and sitting Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom. Taylor and Dahlstrom didn’t return phone calls Friday.
3. Attrition
Will all the candidates who’ve announced a run actually make it to the August primary? Heilala, the Anchorage podiatrist, said he expects some candidates to drop out ahead of the 5 p.m. Monday deadline.
“I’m sure they were maybe thinking the same about me,” Heilala said. “I do still imagine at least three or four would maybe just let (their candidacy) expire, the ones that haven't filed yet.”
