FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) - The election of Alaska’s next governor is more than seven months away, but candidates have been fully campaigning in the Interior this week.
Democrat Byron Mallott and independent Bill Walker were in Fairbanks to attend the annual Tanana Chiefs Conference convention, which brought hundreds of rural delegates to Fairbanks, The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported Sunday (https://bit.ly/1nvPYos).
Mallott, a former Juneau mayor, has received the endorsement of the Alaska Democratic Party and is the only Democrat who is campaigning actively. Walker, a former Valdez mayor, ran an unsuccessful primary challenge in 2010 against Gov. Sean Parnell and will instead pursue the seat as an independent.
Although the filing deadline for governor doesn’t close until June 1, both Mallott and Walker appear to have smooth paths to the general election ballot.
Walker raised more than $200,000 from nearly 900 contributors in the last quarter of 2013, a tally he cites as evidence of a broad base of support for his independent run. Mallott raised more than $230,000 during the same period.
Parnell, a Republican who is seeking re-election, is putting his campaign largely on hold during the busy legislative session, said his campaign manager, Jerry Gallagher. No significant opposition has emerged for the GOP nomination.
“We’re looking forward to the campaign beginning after the session,” Gallagher said.
It will be the first of many trips for both men to the Interior’s largest city. The Fairbanks area is considered a key piece of the equation for winning any statewide office.
“It’s crucial to winning any statewide election,” Mallott said.
Mallott said he’s been steadily traveling the state since formally launching his campaign in October. The Yakutat-born Mallott, a former chief of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp., is making education a focus of his run. Even amid projected revenue declines, he said, education needs to remain the state’s investment priority.
He also said the state government needs to do more to encourage transparency and public participation, a trend he said is clearly waning. In a large state with a small population, those ingredients are vital, he said.
“The need to understand each other in a place like that is crucial to a society that works,” he said.
Walker said his decision to run as an independent was a strategic move. He commissioned a study after his unsuccessful 2010 run that he would fare better in both an open primary and a general election.
“Last time I ran, we were playing checkers,” he said. “Now we’re playing chess.”
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Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, https://www.newsminer.com
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