issues

For too long our governor has seemed more interested in what’s happening in Washington, DC, than in solving our problems here at home. We need a governor who always puts Alaskans first. 

We need to make it affordable to live here. We need to grow our economy. We need to reinvest in our aging infrastructure. We need to make our schools work for all our kids. And we need to responsibly manage Alaska’s vast resources — from salmon and halibut to oil and gas  — for the benefit of all Alaskans.

    • Provide enough funding for education to keep class sizes small and pay teachers so that they can afford to stay in Alaska and raise a family. Alaska should attract and retain the best educators in the country. 

    • Get cell phones out of classrooms.

    • Pass a constitutional amendment to “forward fund” education and put an end to the awful annual budget guessing game that leaves school districts and teachers wondering how many teachers are going to get laid off and what extracurricular activities are going to get cut.

    • Rein in bottom trawl bycatch and conserve Alaska’s fisheries resources.

    • Let’s take proactive measures to prevent permits from leaving Alaska for the Lower 48. Alaska’s commercial fishing permits belong in Alaskans’ hands. 

    • Restore the crashed Chinook runs in the Yukon, Kuskokwim, and Southcentral Alaska rivers to improve subsistence, sport, and commercial fishing for generations to come.

    • Protect the rural preference.

    • Increase co-management of subsistence resources by building more active and collaborative partnerships between the State, the Federal government, and local communities.

    • Prevent tax dollars from going to glitzy megaprojects that don’t serve our critical needs and rarely materialize.

    • Build and maintain quality roads, airports and airstrips, bridges, power plants, and ports across the state, that help grow the economy and lower costs.

    • Champion Alaska’s homegrown businesses and entrepreneurs to bring more investment and good jobs to the state.

    • Cut regulations that protect special interests, favor out-of-state companies, and stifle small businesses here at home.

    • Support development of all energy sources — renewables, hydro, and natural gas — to bring down the cost of energy for Alaskans.

    • Require the four Railbelt utilities to cooperate with each other in order to provide cheaper electricity for Alaskans.

    • Partner with industry and support the development of an Alaska natural gas pipeline.

    • Bring down the cost of housing by cutting red tape and making it legal to build affordable homes where Alaskans need them most.

    • Make childcare affordable in all parts of the state by supporting childcare providers and cutting red tape that prevents qualified individuals from getting licensed.

    • Support our state’s first responders by providing essential funding and resources to police, fire, and emergency medical personnel. 

    • Adequately fund the Village Public Safety Officer program so that it can provide critical services to rural communities.