The second session of the 34th Alaska Legislature is just two days away! But some politicos might be cutting it close due to weather issues in Juneau. Democrat Mary Peltola announced that she will challenge Senator Dan Sullivan (R – Alaska), putting Alaska on the map as one of the key Senate races in 2026. Another progressive is planning to enter the U.S. House race. Republican gubernatorial candidate Dave Bronson announced his running mate on Wednesday (1/14/2026), making him the second candiate to have chosen a running mate. Another candidate has joined the already crowded field for governor. And Governor Mike Dunleavy (R – Alaska) is scheduled to give his last State of the State address on Thursday night (1/22/2026).

A friendly message and reminder to all our readers. The Landmine is made possible by myself and a team of awesome Alaskans. I have been covering the legislative session in Juneau for the last seven years and just arrived for my eighth session. We will be covering all the 2026 Alaska elections in-depth. If you enjoy the content we provide, please consider making a one time or recurring monthly donation. You can click here to donate. We have a system that makes it super easy. We would really appreciate it. And thanks to everyone who has been supportive. 

Start of session in sight

The second session of the 34th Alaska Legislature is set to get underway on Tuesday (1/20/2026) at 1 pm, when both bodies are scheduled to gavel in. But it may need to get pushed back a bit if enough legislators can’t get to Juneau by then.

Several legislators were scheduled to fly in today, but no flights made it into Juneau today due to dense fog. The dense fog advisory does not end until tomorrow at noon. Some politicos told me that they are being rebooked to Tuesday, meaning the flights tomorrow are all full. An Alaska Airlines spokesperson told me they are looking at adding a flight tomorrow. There’s never a dull moment in Juneau!

I am glad I flew in last night. I nearly switched my flight to today after the gate agent announced there was a fog warning in Juneau last night and we might end up in Sitka. I rolled the dice and we made it. Lobbyist Ted Popely and Representative Rebecca Schwanke (R – Glenallen) were also on the flight. I was able to start getting settled into my place in Juneau and get my office back in action. That leaves plenty of time for a Costco run tomorrow! 

The Legislative Budget & Audit Committee is scheduled to meet Tuesday at 10 am to consider a contract award. Both the House and Senate finance committees are scheduled to hold hearings this week where they will hear from the Dunleavy administration on the production forecast, revenue forecast, and Dunleavy’s proposed budget. 

Governor Dunleavy has told legislative leadership that he plans to give his final State of the State on Thursday night at 7 pm to a joint session of the Legislature. But it is still not listed on the Legislature’s calendar. If it is indeed on Thursday, it will be the earliest he’s ever given the annual address. Sources tell me the speech is well over an hour. He’s likely to lay out his mystery fiscal plan and pump up his white whale, the gasline. 

Look for this issue to get serious attention early in the session. Dunleavy vetoed the $70 million in transportation match in the FY2026 budget for funding source reasons. But then he put it back in his FY2026 supplemental request! Getting the money will require a three-fourths vote of the Legislature, which is no easy task.  

Peltola v. Sullivan

Mary Peltola officially announced her bid to challenge incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan this week. This is going to be an expensive race, likely the most expensive in Alaska history. Her entrance puts Alaska on par with Maine, North Carolina, and Ohio as races the Democrats must win to take back control of the Senate. Their path is extremely narrow as Republicans currently hold a 53-47 advantage in the U.S. Senate. And with a Republican president, they are still in control if it’s 50-50 with the vice president as a tie-breaker. 

Peltola’s video announcement was posted om Monday (1/12/2026) at 4:05 am, the perfect time for the D.C. and East Coast crowd to see it at 8 am! 

The Landmine’s Paxson Woelber was at her campaign kickoff yesterday in Anchorage at 49th State. You can read his article and see his photos here. 

Peltola sat down with Trill Gates this week for a brief interview. When asked at the end what she wants Alaskans to know when they are thinking about voting, Peltola responded, “I am a regular Alaskan. I care deeply about Alaska and Alaskans.” Gates should have asked her how many regular Alaskans get paid a $400,000 salary working for a D.C. based lobbying firm. Peltola was hired by the D.C. lobbying firm Holland & Hart in March. She worked there until just before filing to run for the U.S. Senate. 

Other Happenings 

I got a good tip this week about another progressive that is planning to enter the U.S. House race. Naknek resident Bill Hill, an independent, is working with the progressive campaign firm Ship Creek Group. He’s worked as a commercial fisherman, teacher, and superintendent. He’s made political donations to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders, and Kamala Harris. This Landmine article provides more information, “Alaska U.S. House race poised for another serious progressive candidate.”

Dave Bronson announced Fairbanks resident Josh Church as his running mate this week. Church is a Marine veteran who saw action in Iraq and Afghanistan. He’s a husband and father of three and works as a financial planner. I recorded a Landmine Radio podcast with him after the announcement. That will be posted tomorrow!

Another one! This makes 15 candidates in the governor’s race. 

If this happens, it would be a pretty big pick for Click Bishop. 

Rick Whitbeck is leaving his role as state director for Representative Nick Begich (R – Alaska). Whitbeck will be replaced by Leslie Hajdukovich, who is currently Begich’s Fairbanks regional director. Congrats, Leslie! Whitbeck applied to lead the Alaska Oil & Gas Association and Resource Development Council in recent months, but was not chosen for either. Hajdukovich unsuccessfully challenged Senator Scott Kawasaki (D – Fairbanks) in 2024, losing by three points. Best of luck to Whitbeck on his future endeavors. 

This is pretty wild. It will be very interesting to see how this all plays out. The Small Business Administration has been looking into the 8(a) program for months. And sources tell me the Department of Treasury and Department of Justice are also looking into the program. 

I hate how certain people are either expected or pressured to give prizes back at these charity fundraisers. The donation is buying the ticket! I can see if it’s a very wealthy person who isn’t impacted by the win. But in many cases people are shamed for keeping what they rightfully won. Shuckerow was there with his girlfriend. I wonder if he’s in the doghouse?! If I ever win one of these big ones, I am keeping the prize! 

This Week’s Loose Unit 

We have a familiar name as this week’s designee. This week’s Loose Unit is Crooked Adam Crum!

You may recall in October when the Landmine broke the story about his very loose and questionable $50 million investment from the Constitutional Budget Reserve (CBR). Crooked Crum signed off on the private equity investment on his way out the door as Revenue commissioner. Soon after, he filed to run for governor. That was all extremely loose behavior. 

There’s been significant reporting on his questionable investment since the Landmine broke the story. But it got even looser this week.

Documents obtained by the Landmine show the state offloaded Crooked Crum’s boondoggle for a nearly $1 million loss! Maximum loose. It’s actually more considering the $20.6 million initial payment made to DigitalBridge did not earn interest. The state is saying because the remaining money earned interest the loss is lower, but that does not make sense. The liability was purchased by Migdal, an Israeli insurance company listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. I would love to know how that sale came about.  

Anyhoo, the whole situation is hyper loose. Crooked Crum made the investment as commissioner against policy guidelines for how the CBR should be invested. And now he wants people to elect him governor. Classic Loose Unit behavior.

If you have a nomination for this week’s Loose Unit, or if you have any political news, stories or gossip (or any old pics of politicians or public officials) please email me at jeff@alaskalandmine.com.