Alaska elects first Democrat since 2002
Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, 37, becomes the state's youngest governor and ends a 24-year Republican hold on the office.
By Samuel Hayes ·
The Associated Press called the Alaska governor's race on Saturday, naming Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins the winner. At age 37, he will be the youngest person to hold the office in the state's history.
Kreiss-Tomkins defeated three Republican candidates: Bernadette Wilson, Dave Bronson, and Treg Taylor. Wilson held the endorsement of President Trump. The victory ended a long stretch of Republican control, as the previous Democratic governor, Tony Knowles, left office in 2002.
The race used a ranked-choice voting system, requiring a candidate to secure a majority of votes to win. Counting the ballots took more than a week due to mail-in ballots and remote precincts. In a separate vote on Election Day, Alaskans rejected a proposal to eliminate that system, keeping ranked-choice voting in place for future elections.
Kreiss-Tomkins, who served as a state representative from Sitka, campaigned on a platform of bipartisan cooperation. He described himself as a "man of the middle" and said he plans to staff his administration with Democrats, Republicans, and independents. He received endorsements from three former governors of different parties and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski.
In an interview conducted just before he voted in Anchorage, Kreiss-Tomkins emphasized his desire for functional government. "I strongly believe people just want things to work, and want people to work together," he said. He characterized his approach as high-energy and problem-solving.
The incoming governor faces several immediate challenges. Alaskans have reported rising costs for food, fuel, and housing over the past year. School districts have closed buildings and increased class sizes due to flat state funding. A potential shortage of accessible natural gas near population centers is also expected to affect utility prices. The state has seen residents migrate out for more than a decade.
Kreiss-Tomkins is scheduled to take office at noon on December 7. With this victory, Democrats will control 30 governors' offices nationally, an increase from the 24 they held previously.
