The June 1 filing deadline to run for the Legislature, governor, or lieutenant governor is just six days away. But an interesting quirk in Alaska’s election law means the real filing deadline for governor and lieutenant governor is actually June 27. 

When Alaska voters passed Ballot Measure 2 in 2020 – adopting an open primary and ranked choice voting – it changed how the governor and lieutenant are elected. Prior to that, the governor and lieutenant governor ran in separate party primaries, and were married up as a ticket after the primary. Since 2022, the governor and lieutenant governor run as a ticket.

In 2022, Governor Mike Dunleavy (R – Alaska) was up for re-election. He chose Nancy Dahlstrom as his running mate. Democrat Les Gara chose Jessica Cook. And independent Bill Walker chose Heidi Drygas.

There were ten tickets for governor/lieutenant governor in the 2022 primary. But Dunleavy/Dahlstrom, Gara/Cook, and Walker/Drygas were the main ones. All three tickets were well established. And Dunleavy effectively consolidated the Republican base as this incumbent governor. 

But this year, Dunleavy is termed out – making the 2026 Alaska governor’s race the first open governor’s race since former Governor Tony Knowles was termed out in 2002. 

There are currently 18 candidates for governor (12 Republican, 3 Democrat, 3 independent), but several of them are not actively campaigning or raising money. Of the 12 main candidates for governor, only four Republicans have named a running mate. Democrat Tom Begich says he is announcing his running mate tomorrow in Fairbanks (sources tell the Landmine it is Democrat Julia Hnilicka). 

Several of the candidates in the crowded field have struggled to find a good running mate. Either because the pool of good potential running mates don’t want to be on the bottom of a ticket, have job or family considerations, or are just smart enough to stay away from this mess. 

The deadline for candidates to name a running mate is June 1. If they fail to name a running mate by the deadline, they are disqualified.

But there is another important deadline, the withdrawal deadline of June 27. Alaska law allows either the governor candidate or lieutenant governor to withdraw from the primary by June 27. If either withdraw before the June 27 deadline, they are permitted to name a replacement. 

This could create a few strange scenarios. 

For the candidates who have not yet found a running mate and don’t want to be disqualified, they could theoretically pick a place holder and spend the 26 days after June 1 looking for a real running mate. 

For candidates who decide they aren’t viable or get pressured to withdraw, they could try and make a deal with another candidate to be their running mate.   

Whatever happens between now and June 1 for candidates for governor and lieutenant governor matters. But the true primary field for governor and lieutenant governor tickets won’t be set until June 27. Look for several changes to happen between June 1 and June 27.