Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, a former state representative from the small island community of Sitka, won the race for Alaska governor, according to a race call by the Associated Press.At 37, he'll be the youngest governor in state history.Kreiss-Tomkins will replace outgoing Gov.
Mike Dunleavy, a term-limited Republican who has been governor since 2018.The state's last Democratic governor was Tony Knowles, who left office in 2002.Kreiss-Tomkins, known by his initials JKT, made his "high-energy, bipartisan, problem-solving approach" a centerpiece of his campaign.He's said he plans to build an administration of Democrats, Republicans and independents and described himself at a debate as a "man of the middle." He was endorsed by three former governors — a Democrat, a Republican and an independent — along with Republican Sen.
Lisa Murkowski.Alaskans have had enough of zero-sum partisan politics, he said in an interview just before voting at a precinct in Anchorage on Election Day."I strongly believe people just want things to work, and want people to work together," Kreiss-Tomkins said.Loading...
The AP race call came after over a week of counting votes, including those coming in by mail and from remote parts of the state.In the ranked-choice system the state uses, he faced three Republican candidates, including one backed by President Trump.
Winning requires getting a majority of the votes.Voters were also facing a question on the ballot about whether to scrap that unique, ranked-choice system.That proposal failed, according to another AP race call, keeping the system in place.With Kreiss-Tomkins' win and others in the midterms, Democrats will hold 30 governors' offices across the country, up from 24 now.Kreiss-Tomkins will take office in a state where voters have loudly complained that things aren't working as they should.Rising costs and relatively flat state funding have forced schools to close and class sizes to rise.
Already-high costs for food, fuel...