The candidate filing deadline is tomorrow at 5 pm! There’s been some big last minute surprises including former Governor Bill Walker and former Senator Lesil McGuire both filing letters of intent to run for governor. Some more candidates for governor announced their running mates while some have still yet to name their running mates. Several more people filed to run for the Legislature, but several seats still only have one candidate. And the special session is ongoing with both finance committees holding hearings on the gasline bill. 

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Check out the ninth episode of Governor Peninsula! In this episode, the lodge is electric as the animals struggle to make their last minute decisions. And make sure to tell us what you think.

Filing Deadline Almost Here

The 5 pm candiate filing deadline on June 1 is less than 24 hours away! As always happens, there have been several last minute surprises.

The biggest is former Governor Bill Walker filing a letter of intent to run for governor. His former Revenue Commissioner Randy Hoffbeck also filed a letter of intent. If Walker decides to run, Hoffbeck will likely be his running mate. Walker told me he has waited but has not seen any of the candidates in the crowded field talking about or addressing the state’s fiscal realities. If Walker does indeed run for governor, it will be very disruptive. He would almost certainly make the top-four with his name ID. 

Another surprise is former Senator Lesil McGuire filing a letter of intent to run for governor. McGuire, a moderate Republican, has been saying for months she was going to enter the race. But she finally filed a letter of intent. She says her running mate is Elizabeth Rexford, a longtime legislative staffer who currently works for Representative Will Stapp (R – Fairbanks). But Rexford would have to quit her job to run, which could not be an easy choice for a single mom of two. We will know tomorrow what McGuire’s plan is.

Several candidates for governor announced their running mates this week. Most chose complete unknowns. Republican Crooked Adam Crum chose Bob Craig, a former VA employee with a healthcare background. Senator Matt Claman (D – Anchorage) chose Sarah Skeel, a former Providence executive. Republican Edna DeVries chose George Hightower. And Democrat Tom Begich chose Julia Hnilicka (see this week’s Loose Unit for more on that one).

One candidate who made a good choice is Republican Matt Heilala. He chose former Representative Jesse Sumner. Sumner served one term in the House before deciding not to seek re-election in 2024. He is a successful builder and businessman from the Mat-Su Valley who also served on the Mat-Su Borough Assembly. And most importantly, he knows Juneau. Heilala/Sumner could be a sleeper ticket. 

Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom (R – Alaska), Republican Treg Taylor, and Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins have still not chosen running mates. My bet is Dahlstrom does not end up filing. There’s some chatter Taylor’s running mate may be Kelly Tshibaka. It’s still up in the air who Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins‘ running mate will be, but you can bet it won’t be a white man. Democrats won’t allow two white men to be on a ticket together! 

And don’t forget, while June 1 is the filing deadline, June 27 is the withdrawal deadline. Alaska law allows either the governor or lieutenant governor candidate to be replaced before that. This Landmine article goes into more detail. Look for some moves to be made for certain tickets between June 1 and June 27.

As of this writing, 25 of the 50 legislative seats up (40 House, 10 Senate) have only one or no candidates officially filed with the Division of Elections. Many of these seats will get more candidates tomorrow, but it’s looking like a lot of incumbents will be unopposed this year. 

One interesting one is Senate seat Q. This is the seat held by Senator Robb Myers (R – North Pole). There have been rumors for months that Myers is not going to run for re-election. But he’s been cagey about it. Representative Frank Tomaszewski (R – Fairbanks) has not officially filed for re-election to his House seat. It seems something shady is going on where Myers won’t file and Tomaszewski will file for the seat at the last minute. There is also some chatter that Myers may be teeing up his staffer Dawson Mann for the seat. 

This is similar to what former Senator Tom Begich did in 2022. His staffer, now-Senator Löki Tobin (D – Anchorage) and him concocted a plan where Begich would not run, allowing Tobin to file right before the deadline – effectively handing her the seat. I hate when legislators act like they own these seats and play shady games. It’s wrong. The public should not tolerate these kind of games.  

Speaker Bryce Edgmon (I – Dillingham) finally decided to run for the Senate seat Senator Lyman Hoffman (D – Bethel) is retiring from. That will be an interesting race now has five candidates.  

Some real shenanigans are going on in the U.S. Senate race. A Dan Sullivan from Petersburg filed as a Republican against Senator Dan Sullivan (R – Alaska). But he’s still listed as Undeclared in the voter database. Many Democrats seem fine with the shady move. But I recall how mad many of them were when Republican Forrest Wolfe sent out a “Run Forrest Run” mailer when he was running for an East Anchorage House seat. Wolfe was trying to make a clever association with Senator Forrest Dunbar (D – Anchorage), who had used that slogan before. It will be interesting how the Division of Elections deals with this fake Dan Sullivan. Putting incumbent by the real Dan Sullivan seems like the best move. 

The race for District 30 is getting interesting. Representative Kevin McCabe (R – Big Lake) now has three Republican opponents, including Doug Massie.  

This Week’s Loose Unit

This week’s designee is a real doozy. This week’s Loose Unit is Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Begich, with a special mention for his running mate Julia Hnilicka. Begich announced Hnilicka as his running mate on Wednesday (5/27/2026) in Fairbanks. 

It could not have been looser. Hnilicka started off by awkwardly trying to speak Athabaskan, then introduced herself as the daughter of her parents to mimic how many Alaska Natives introduce themselves, then identified herself as the “daughter of settlers,” and then said the lands they were on are “unceded.” It was something else. She went about as far left as you could go with nonsense identity politics while cosplaying an Alaska Native. 

First, maybe Hnilicka’s not familiar with ANCSA and ANILCA. Because if she was she would know the lands were in fact ceded. Second, if she’s so concerned about the wrongs white people have brought onto Alaska Natives, why the fuck is she running? And third, did she not get the message in 2024 that Americans soundly rejected this kind of nonsense? Very loose. 

But it gets better. 

The next day Begich and Hnilicka held an event in Anchorage. Hnilicka doubled down! This time she awkwardly tried to speak another Native language and repeated the “daughter of settlers” and the “unceded land” nonsense. She really like to cosplay an Alaska Native woman! Maybe it’s some kind of sick fetish. Maximum loose!

This was a super loose pick for Begich. Maybe a ton of Democrats turned him down so she was his only choice. But what a stupid move to tack that far to the left. Begich is an old school Democrat who worked with Republicans in the Legislature and Governor Mike Dunleavy (R – Alaska) when he was in the Senate. I could have seen myself voting for Begich in a scenario where it was him and three dividend delusion Republicans in the top-four. Not anymore! I would not vote for him know in any scenario. Classic Loose Unit behavior! 

And you have to read this Suzanne Downing article about Begich picking Hnilicka. It is BRUTAL and hilarious! 

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.