Former state rep tops ranked-choice slugfest as Alaska advances nominees for governor

Seventeen governor-lieutenant governor candidate pairs battled Tuesday to make the primary cutoff and advance to the November general election to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Michael Dunleavy.

Former state Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and running mate Zac Johnson finished first, while former Democratic state Sen. Tom Begich and Julia Hnilicks finished second. They will advance to the November general election, alongside two more winning governor-lieutenant governor pairs. 

Several major political names were among the 34 candidates on the ballot for the two executive offices.

The frontrunner heading into Tuesday’s contest was Begich, whose family has been involved in Alaska politics nearly since the Last Frontier achieved statehood.

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Tom Begich’s father, Rep. Nick Begich Sr., D-Alaska, served in the state and federal legislatures from 1962 until a plane carrying him and House Majority Leader Hale Boggs, D-La., disappeared during a flight through the Inside Passage between Anchorage and Juneau.

Tom Begich’s brother, Mark, was a longtime U.S. senator from Alaska, and most of the family members are Democrats — except incumbent Rep. Nick Begich III, R-Alaska.

Business owner Bernadette Wilson is among the leading Republicans in the nonpartisan primary. Wilson grew up on the Kenai, and her family has lived in Alaska for generations. Her running mate is Michael Shower.

Dunleavy’s Republican deputy, Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, another leading Republican candidate, dropped out of the race in June.

Republican Michael Loren Gilbert is also on the ballot. Gilbert told Ballotpedia he wants to expand the state’s energy dominance and consider a highway link to the Lower 48.

Gilbert’s running mate, Timothy Hickel, represents another storied Alaskan political family.

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Former Gov. Wally Hickel, Timothy’s father, served two nonconsecutive terms as governor decades apart and also served as President Richard Nixon’s interior secretary.

The western bypass of downtown Anchorage that serves Ted Stevens International Airport is known as the Walter J. Hickel Parkway.

Former Anchorage Mayor David Bronson, a Republican, is also considered a leading candidate.

Bronson’s running mate is Josh Church.

Former state Sen. Click Bishop, R-North Star, was also in the race with lieutenant governor candidate Greta Schuerch.

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The state uses ranked-choice voting in general elections. Voters rank candidates by preference, and votes are redistributed in successive rounds as lower-performing candidates are eliminated.

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Though Alaska is considered a red state, Dunleavy’s departure gives Democrats such as Begich an opportunity to flip the governor’s mansion. Begich III defeated then-Rep. Mary Peltola last cycle after Peltola had won the seat following the death of Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, who had represented the state for nearly five decades.