Alaska House of Representatives elections, 2018

2018 Alaska House elections
General	November 6, 2018
Primary	August 21, 2018

In the 2018 elections for the Alaska House of Representatives, Republicans won 23 seats, Democrats won 16 seats, and a Democratic-aligned independent won another race. However, due to defections from within their caucus, Republicans were not able to organize a majority in House. The majority was eventually organized by a bipartisan coalition, and the two parties split control of leadership positions and committee chairs.

To form the bipartisan coalition, the House elected Rep. Bryce Edgmon as speaker on February 14, 2019, nearly a month after the legislative session began on January 15. This was the longest period the House had ever gone without a speaker.

Edgmon, who was elected as a Democrat and served as speaker from 2017 to 2018, changed his party affiliation from Democratic to unenrolled on February 11. The 21-member coalition that elected him speaker included 15 Democrats, four Republicans, one independent, and himself. Eighteen Republicans voted against Edgmon.^[1]

Because Republicans did not organize a majority in House, Alaska's trifecta status stayed as divided government, the same as 2017 to 2018.

Read more about the aftermath of the elections below.

Heading into the 2018 elections, Democrats had an effective 22-18 majority in the House. A coalition of 17 Democrats, three Republicans, and two independents controlled the chamber following the 2016 elections. Republicans won 21 of 40 seats in 2016, but state Reps. Paul Seaton, Gabrielle LeDoux, and Louise Stutes left the GOP caucus and joined the bipartisan coalition, which elected Edgmon as state House speaker. Seaton, who ran for re-election as an independent, and fellow majority coalition member Jason Grenn (I) were defeated by Republican challengers in 2018. Bart LeBon (R) won an open race to replace coalition member Scott Kawasaki (D).

All 40 House seats were up for election in 2018.

• Click here to see all of the general election matchups
• Click here to read more about the battleground races

Heading into the election, Alaska had been under divided government since 2014 when Bill Walker (I) won the governorship. This broke the state's Republican trifecta that first formed after the 2012 elections when Republicans won control of the Alaska State Senate from a Democratic-led majority coalition. Democrats won the state House in 2016 for the first time since losing control in the 1994 elections.

Republicans needed to win the state House to have a trifecta. Democrats needed to win the state Senate and the governorship to have a trifecta. There had not been a Democratic trifecta in Alaska since at least 1992. Heading into the 2018 elections, 16 states were under divided government, eight states were Democratic trifectas, and 26 states were Republican trifectas.

The Alaska House of Representatives was one of 87 state legislative chambers holding elections in 2018. There are 99 chambers throughout the country. The Alaska House of Representatives was one of 22 state legislative battleground chambers identified by Ballotpedia in the 2018 elections. Read more below.

Alaska state representatives serve two-year terms, with all seats up for election every two years.

For more information about the Democratic primaries, click here.
For more information about the Republican primaries, click here.

Aftermath of elections[edit]

• February 19, 2019: The organization of the Alaska House was announced. The House majority consisted of 15 Democrats, eight Republicans, and two members unaffiliated with either party.^[2]
  • House Speaker: Bryce Edgmon (undeclared)^[3]
  • Majority Leader: Steve M. Thompson (R)
  • Majority Whip: Louise Stutes (R)
  • Minority Leader: Lance Pruitt (R)
  • Minority Whip: DeLena Johnson (R)
  • Committee on Committees Chairman: Bryce Edgmon (undeclared)
  • Rules Committee Chairman: Charles M. Kopp (R)
  • Finance Committee Co-Chairs: Neal Foster (D) and Tammie Wilson (R)
  • Community and Regional Affairs Committee Co-Chairs: Harriet Drummond (D) and Sara Hannan (D)
  • Education Committee Co-Chairs: Harriet Drummond (D) and Andi Story (D)
  • Health and Social Services Committee Co-Chairs: Ivy Spohnholz (D) and Tiffany Zulkosky (D)
  • Judiciary Committee Chairman: Matt Claman (D)
  • Labor and Commerce Committee Co-Chairs: Gabrielle LeDoux (R) and Adam Wool (D)
  • Resources Committee Co-Chairs: John Lincoln (D) and Geran Tarr (D)
  • State Affairs Committee Chairman: Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (D)
  • Transportation Committee Co-Chairs: Louise Stutes (R) and Adam Wool (D)
  • Arctic Policy, Economic Development, and Tourism Special Committee Chairwoman: Sara Hannan (D)
  • Energy Special Committee Co-Chairs: Zack Fields (D) and Grier Hopkins (D)
  • Fisheries Special Committee Chairwoman: Louise Stutes (R)
  • Military and Veterans Special Committee Chairwoman: Gabrielle LeDoux (R)
  • Members elected as Republicans but participating in House majority coalition: Bart LeBon, Steve M. Thompson, Tammie Wilson, Gabrielle LeDoux, Charles M. Kopp, Jennifer B. Johnston, Gary Knopp, and Louise Stutes

• February 14, 2019: Rep. Bryce Edgmon was elected as House speaker three days after switching his party affiliation from Democratic to unenrolled. Edgmon, who also served as House speaker from 2017 to 2018, was supported by all 15 Democrats, independent Daniel Ortiz, and Republicans Louise Stutes, Gabrielle LeDoux, Jennifer B. Johnston, and Charles M. Kopp. Democratic leader Chris Tuck nominated Edgmon for the speakership.^[4] Eighteen Republicans voted against Edgmon. Stutes and LeDoux were part of bipartisan coalition Edgmon led from 2017 to 2018. The Feb. 14 vote was the first time Johnston and Kopp supported Edgmon. They previously backed Republican leader David Talerico.^[1] Rep. Gary Knopp, another Republican who did not support Talerico for speaker, was not present for the vote because he was on a previously scheduled trip back to his district. He said thought the speaker's vote was “a start to build that coalition concept” and said he hoped to join the coalition.^[5]

• February 13, 2019: Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) released a budget proposal that the Anchorage Daily News said contained $900 million in spending cuts.^[6] See the full proposal here. One day earlier, he tweeted: "Elections have consequences, & the majority of Alaskans have chosen conservatives in #AKLeg, and expect a republican led majority. With the budget coming out tomorrow and the house absent from work for the last month, it’s time to get to work and do the people’s business."^[7]

• February 12, 2019: A vote to elect Rep. David Talerico (R) as speaker failed by a 20-20 margin. Rep. Gary Knopp (R) voted no despite saying one day earlier that he would vote for a Republican speaker. Rep. Louise Stutes (R) nominated Knopp as speaker. The vote also failed by a 20-20 margin. Knopp said he had originally intended to vote for Talerico before Stutes suggested that he be nominated as speaker instead. When asked about his Feb. 11 statement that said he would vote for a Republican speaker, Knopp said, “I am supporting a Republican nominee: myself.” Knopp also said he was bothered by a Facebook comment from Rep. David Eastman (R) on an article about Knopp. In the comment, Eastman discussed the procedures for recalling a state representative from office.^[8][9]

• February 11, 2019:
  • Rep. Gary Knopp (R) announced that he was returning to the GOP caucus and said he would “be the 21st vote to support a Republican-led coalition or caucus.” Knopp said he still believed that a narrow Republican majority would fracture when faced with divisive issues like budgetary policy, but he thought that the problems caused by an unorganized House majority were greater.^[10]
  • Rep. Bryce Edgmon, the House speaker from 2017 to 2018, changed his party affiliation from Democratic to undeclared.^[11]

• February 8, 2019:
  • Rep. George Rauscher (R) left the group of eight lawmakers attempting to negotiate a bipartisan power-sharing agreement (see Feb. 4 entry). Rauscher said, “We all worked in good faith and did everything we could to move forward with this concept, but after many hours now spent, I can confidently say that I do not believe all the hurdles can be addressed.” In response, Rep. Lance Pruitt (R), another member of the group, said, “[Rauscher leaving] doesn’t kill it. It’s still out there as that backstop.” As of Feb. 8, the group's plan would have created two co-leaders of the House (one Democrat and one Republican) as well as bipartisan committee co-chairs and equal membership on committees. Moreover, Democrats and Republicans both would have a limited number of opportunities to advance stalled bills out of committee.^[12]
  • A vote to elect David Talerico (R) as speaker of the house failed, 20 to 17 (21 votes were required for the vote to pass). Democrats Zack Fields and Tiffany Zulkosky and Republican Gary Knopp were absent for the vote.^[13]

• February 7, 2019: Rep. Steve Thompson (R) said the Republican caucus had made offers to several Democrats asking them to join a majority coalition.^[14]

• February 5, 2019: The House reached its 22nd day in the legislative session without a majority. This matched the state record, set in 1981, for the longest period of time without a majority.

• February 4, 2019:
  • The House held another vote for permanent speaker at the request of Rep. David Eastman (R). Republican leader David Talerico was voted down 20-20, the same margin he lost by on January 22. Again, Republicans Gary Knopp, Gabrielle LeDoux, and Louise Stutes voted against him. Knopp said he could possibly support Talerico in the future, but he said he first wanted the majority coalition to have the potential for success. Rep. Bryce Edgmon, the Democratic speaker from 2017 to 2018, was also nominated for the permanent speakership, but he declined to be considered.^[15]
  • The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported that eight House members were working to create a power-sharing agreement between Democrats and Republicans. The group included three Democrats (Grier Hopkins, Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, Andi Story), four Republicans (Bart LeBon, Lance Pruitt, George Rauscher, and Josh Revak), and independent Daniel Ortiz. Hopkins and LeBon said the group was looking at power-sharing models used by evenly-split legislatures from other states and that they planned on presenting the different power-sharing options to members of the House. They said their goal for reaching an agreement was February 13, the day Gov. Mike Dunleavy's budget proposal was set to be released.^[16]

• January 29, 2019: With the Alaska House eight days away from setting a record for longest period of time without a permanent leader, James Brooks of the Anchorage Daily News published an article with commentary from legislators on what was causing the deadlock. Read the commentary below. The record of 22 days was set in 1981.^[17]

• January 22, 2019: The Alaska House voted down a nomination of Republican leader David Talerico (R) for speaker of the house. The vote was 20-20, with Republican Reps. Gabrielle LeDoux, Louise Stutes, and Gary Knopp voting with all 16 Democrats and independent Daniel Ortiz against the nomination.^[18] David Eastman (R), who previously said he might not vote for Talerico, voted in favor of the nomination. Rep. Chris Tuck (D) nominated Bryce Edgmon (D), the house speaker from 2017 to 2018, for the same position. Tuck withdrew the nomination shortly after Talerico was voted down, saying he expected the Edgmon nomination to fail as well. Knopp said that he would not vote for Talerico or Edgmon and that he still hoped to form a bipartisan caucus.^[19]

• January 17, 2019: The Alaska House continued to operate without a majority in place. Because of this, no committees could be formed and legislative business could not be conducted.^[20]
  • The House voted 35-4 to install Rep. Neal Foster (D) as speaker pro tempore so that he could preside over the chamber in place of Lieutenant Gov. Meyer. This was not the same as electing a speaker of the house, and Foster's powers were limited to administrative tasks like accepting nominations for a permanent speaker of the chamber. Before Foster was elected, the House rejected a bid by Rep. Mark Neuman (R) to be speaker pro tempore, 19-20.^[20]
  • The House also swore in Sharon Jackson (R) after declining to accept her nomination on Jan. 15 (see entry below for more details), and it voted to keep House staff employed until a majority could be formed.^[20]

• January 15, 2019: The 2019 legislative session convened without a majority caucus in place.^[21] With no majority having formed, incoming Lieutenant Gov. Kevin Meyer (R) began to serve as the presiding officer until the House could decide its organization and elect a speaker.^[22] According to Josh Applebee, Meyer's chief of staff, the lieutenant governor is granted few powers by the state constitution apart from swearing members in and allowing them to vote on chamber leadership. He said, “There’s no committees to be appointed, communications from the governor and the Senate can be received but not acted upon; they basically sit on the clerk’s desk.”^[23]
  • Meyer swore in just 39 members of the House (22 Republicans, 16 Democrats, and one independent) because Democrat Chris Tuck raised a point of order over whether Sharon Jackson (R) could be sworn in by Meyer, a member of the executive branch. Jackson was appointed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) as the replacement for Nancy Dahlstrom (R), who Dunleavy appointed as commissioner of the Department of Corrections on December 5.^[24]

• January 9, 2019: Knopp gave an interview to Nat Herz of the Alaska Energy Desk where he continued to say that a 21-member Republican majority would not work and that the chamber needed a bipartisan majority to function.

• January 4, 2019: Following oral arguments, the Alaska Supreme Court affirmed the finding by special master Eric Aarseth that the Division of Elections acted properly when it held a recount in the District 1 race and found that Bart LeBon (R) defeated Kathryn Dodge (D) by one vote.^[25]

• December 21, 2018: A group calling itself the Coastal House Legislators (Reps. Bryce Edgmon (D), Neal Foster (D), Louise Stutes (R), Daniel Ortiz (I), Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (D), Gabrielle LeDoux (R), John Lincoln (D), Tiffany Zulkosky (D), Sara Hannan (D), and Andi Story (D)) released a joint statement that said, "It is our goal to be part of a strong, hard-working majority whose highest priorities are the prosperity, safety, health, and well-being of the people of Alaska...[We] want fellow House members to know that we are, and will remain, united in our determination to join a coalition that is dedicated to passing a responsible budget, keeping Alaskans safe, and protecting the Permanent Fund and the Permanent Fund Dividend. We will only participate in a coalition that is dedicated to these goals."^[26]

• December 20, 2018: Superior Court Judge Eric Aarseth ruled that the Alaska Division of Elections properly counted ballots in the District 1 recount and said he would issue a report on Dec. 21. Aarseth said, "The Legislature has made the emphasis that a prompt decision, in my words, is more important than perfection in the election process itself." The Alaska Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Aarseth's report Jan. 4.^[27]

• December 20, 2018: Gov. Dunleavy selected Sharon Jackson (R) as the replacement for Nancy Dahlstrom (R) in District 13. Jackson's nomination was subject to confirmation by House Republicans.^[28]

• December 12, 2018: Republicans in House Districts 13 and 14 nominated Craig Christenson, Sharon Jackson, and Richard "Clayton" Trotter as potential replacements for state Rep.-elect Nancy Dahlstrom (R) in District 13. According to KTUU, Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) would be responsible for choosing Dahlstrom's replacement from among the three nominees and House Republicans would need to confirm the replacement.^[29]

• December 9, 2018: In an interview with The Anchorage Daily News, Knopp said he did not believe a 21-member Republican majority would be stable, particularly if that majority included David Eastman (R). The ADN reported that Eastman was the sole “no” vote against legislation 75 times from 2017 to 2018 and that he had more solo “no” votes than all other legislators combined from 2013 to 2016. Knopp said that he was attempting to organize a 24-member bipartisan majority (12 Democrats and 12 Republicans) that would divide leadership positions between the parties and avoid divisive tax legislation (including oil and gas taxes and broad-based taxes). Knopp said there was Democratic support for the idea, but Republicans had not yet accepted it. Louise Stutes (R) and Daniel Ortiz (I) both expressed support for the proposed coalition.^[30]

• December 8, 2018: Rep. Gary Knopp (R)—one of the 20 Republicans who appeared at a November 7 press conference to announce they were forming a majority coalition—said he was leaving the Republican caucus.^[21] Knopp said, “A 21 member caucus cannot succeed. It’s doomed for failure and I’m not going to be on that train. I’m not joining the Democrats either. I’m doing this to try and force a true coalition.”^[31]

• December 7, 2018: The Alaska Supreme Court appointed Eric Aarseth, a Superior Court judge from Anchorage, as a special master to oversee Dodge's appeal. The Supreme Court said Aarseth's report would be due on December 21 and that oral argument in the case would be set for early January.^[32]

• December 5, 2018: Dodge (D) announced that she would appeal the result of the recount to the Alaska Supreme Court, challenging the Division of Elections' decision on four ballots.^[33] Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) also announced that he was appointing state Rep.-elect Nancy Dahlstrom (R) as the commissioner of the Department of Corrections, creating a vacancy to be filled by Dunleavy.^[34][35]

• November 30, 2018: An automatic recount was held in the District 1 race.^[36] The recount showed LeBon (R) with 2,663 votes and Dodge (D) with 2,662 votes. The state review board determined that the uncounted ballot marked for Dodge was spoiled and would remain uncounted. According to Alaska Public Media, Dodge had until December 5 to appeal the result to the Alaska Supreme Court.^[37] See more from Juneau Empire here.

• November 26, 2018: The District 1 race was certified as a tied race. Josie Bahnke, Director of Division of Elections, said there was one uncounted ballot marked for Dodge (D) and that the state review board would determine its status on Nov. 30.^[38]

• November 23, 2018: A hand audit of 522 absentee ballots in the District 1 race was held.^[36]

• November 21, 2018: This was the final day for overseas ballots to arrive and be counted in the District 1 race.^[39] A review of all in-person ballots and an initial count of absentee ballots showed that Dodge (D) and LeBon (R) had received 2,661 votes each.^[36]

• November 16, 2018: A total of 309 absentee ballots were counted in the District 1 race.^[40] LeBon (R) took a five-vote lead, but 68 absentee ballots had not been returned yet.^[39]

• November 13, 2018: Dodge (D) took a 10-vote lead over LeBon (R) in the District 1 race after questioned ballots were counted.^[40]

• November 8, 2018: Eastman told KTOO that he would not commit to voting for Talerico as speaker but that he did plan to vote for a Republican. He said, “I think we’ve got the right 21. But that still leaves 21 options for speaker. And I haven’t figured out which of those options is the best one for my district and the things I care about.”^[41]

• November 7, 2018: Twenty Republican representatives held a press conference where they announced they had won the majority in the chamber and would elect Rep. Dave Talerico (R) as House Speaker. A caucus would need 21 votes to elect the House speaker.^[41]
  • In attendance was District 1 candidate Bart LeBon (R), who led Kathryn Dodge (D) in a too close to call race by 79 votes.^[42]
  • Not in attendance were Rep. David Eastman (R), who KTOO said was a conservative representative known for breaking with Republican leadership in the last session, and Reps. Gabrielle LeDoux (R) and Louise Stutes (R), both of whom caucused with the Democratic-led majority coalition in the last session.^[43][41]

Commentary on deadlock in house leadership race[edit]

The following commentary on the deadlock in the state house leadership race is from a January 29 Anchorage Daily News article by James Brooks.^[17]

• Rep. Bryce Edgmon (D): “It’s not issues that are separating us. At this point, I think it’s more party politics.”

• Rep. David Talerico (R): "I’m assuming that it’ll have to be a mixed group [of Democrats and Republicans] at some point...I’ve been asked a few times which day I think it will be. Well, I wish it was yesterday.”

• Rep. Andy Josephson (D): “Because Gov. Dunleavy is believed to be a budget hawk, and has opposed new revenue concepts, it’s actually made us more cohesive as a group of 19 because I think there’s a belief there has to be some counterweight vis-a-vis that philosophy.”

• Rep. Gary Knopp (R) on why Republicans had not joined a coalition: “I think the new candidates, the freshmen, and some of the incumbents are scared of the direction the party’s taken in the last few years.”
  • Knopp was specifically referring to the Republican Party of Alaska running primary challenges against members who defected after the 2016 elections.

• Rep. Louise Stutes (R) on why members were reluctant to elect a speaker from the other party: “We see very similarly in the issues at hand. The problem seems to be whether you have an R or a D behind your name.”

• Rep. Mark Neuman (R): In a paraphrase from Brooks, Neuman said a changeup in the Democratic and Republican leadership could offer a path forward. He also said he was concerned that members were paying too much attention to their constituents on social media when making decisions.

1981 House deadlock[edit]

The record for the longest time the Alaska House went without a majority was set in 1981 when a majority did not form for 22 days after the start of the legislative session. Democrats won 22 of 40 seats in the chamber, but they were unable to organize a majority because their members did not agree on the leadership of the Finance Committee.

Eventually, Democrats put together a slim majority and elected Rep. Jim Duncan (D) as speaker. He served as speaker until June 2018 when Republicans lured several Democrats who were unhappy with the length of the session away from the majority coalition. They deposed Duncan as the chamber leader and installed Rep. Joe Hayes (R) as the new speaker.

Duncan's allies sued the new majority, claiming that their actions were unconstitutional. However, an Alaska Superior Court dismissed their claim.^[44][45]

Tied races in Alaska[edit]

According to Alaska state law, a race that remains tied after a recount shall be determined by a game of chance.^[46]

The last tied race in Alaska was the House District 37 Democratic primary in 2006. Bryce Edgmon (D) defeated state Rep. Carl Moses (D) in a coin toss.^[47]

Post-election analysis[edit]

See also: State legislative elections, 2018

The Republican Party maintained control of the Alaska State Senate and entered into a power-sharing agreement with the Democratic Party in the Alaska House of Representatives in the 2018 election. In the state Senate, 10 out of 20 seats were up for election. The Republican majority was reduced from 14-6 to 13-7. One Republican incumbent was defeated in the general election.

The Alaska House of Representatives was identified as a battleground chamber. All 40 seats were up for election. The Democratic and Republican parties entered into a power-sharing agreement. The Republican majorityHeading into the 2018 elections, Democrats had an effective 22-18 majority in the House. Republicans won 21 of 40 seats in 2016, but three state representatives left the GOP caucus and joined a bipartisan coalition of 17 Democrats, three Republicans, and two independents. The coalition controlled the chamber following the 2016 elections. was reduced from 23-16 to 21-17. One Republican incumbent was defeated in the primary. Two incumbents were defeated in the general election; one Democrat and one independent.

National background[edit]

On November 6, 2018, 87 of the nation's 99 state legislative chambers held regularly scheduled elections for 6,073 of 7,383 total seats, meaning that nearly 82 percent of all state legislative seats were up for election.

• Entering the 2018 election, Democrats held 42.6 percent, Republicans held 56.8 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.6 percent of the seats up for regular election.
• Following the 2018 election, Democrats held 47.3 percent, Republicans held 52.3 percent, and independents and other parties held 0.4 percent of the seats up for regular election.
• A total of 469 incumbents were defeated over the course of the election cycle, with roughly one-third of them defeated in the primary.

Want more information?

• Incumbents defeated in 2018's state legislative elections
• 2018 election analysis: Partisan balance of state legislative chambers
• 2018 election analysis: Number of state legislators by party
• 2018 election analysis: State legislative supermajorities

Districts[edit]

See also: Alaska state legislative districts

Use the interactive map below to find your district.

Candidates[edit]

See also: Statistics on state legislative candidates, 2018

General election candidates[edit]

Alaska House of Representatives General Election 2018
Incumbents are marked with an (i) after their name.
Office	Democratic	Republican	Other
District 1	Kathryn Dodge	Bart LeBon
District 2	Van Lawrence	Steve Thompson (i)
District 3		Tammie Wilson (i)
District 4	Grier Hopkins	Jim Sackett	Tim Lamkin (Independent)
District 5	Adam Wool (i)	Kevin McKinley
District 6	Ed Alexander	David Talerico (i)
District 7		Colleen Sullivan-Leonard (i)
District 8	James Chesbro Jr.	Mark Neuman (i)	Mark Fish (Libertarian Party)
District 9	Bill Johnson	George Rauscher (i) James Squyres
District 10	Patricia Faye-Brazel	David Eastman (i)   Doyle Holmes
District 11	Eileen Patterson	DeLena Johnson (i)
District 12	Stephany Jeffers	Cathy Tilton (i)
District 13	Danyelle Kimp	Nancy Dahlstrom
District 14	Joe Hackenmueller	Kelly Merrick
District 15	Lyn Franks	Gabrielle LeDoux (i)
District 16	Ivy Spohnholz (i)	Stanley Wright
District 17	Andy Josephson (i)	Marcus Sanders
District 18	Harriet Drummond (i)	Anthony Lekanof
District 19	Geran Tarr (i)		Cean Stevens (Libertarian Party)
District 20	Zack Fields	Ceezar Martinson	Warren West (Libertarian Party)
District 21	Matt Claman (i)	Marilyn Stewart
District 22	Dustin Darden	Sara Rasmussen	Jason Grenn (i) (Independent)
District 23	Chris Tuck (i)	Connie Dougherty
District 24	Sue Levi	Charles Kopp (i)
District 25	Pat Higgins	Josh Revak
District 26	Anita Thorne Did not make the ballot: Hunter Dunn	Laddie Shaw
District 27	Liz Snyder	Lance Pruitt (i)
District 28	Amber Lee	Jennifer Johnston (i)
District 29	Shawn Butler	Ben Carpenter
District 30		Gary A. Knopp (i)
District 31	Paul Seaton (i)	Sarah Vance
District 32	Dennis Harris	Louise Stutes (i)	Sandra Katelnikoff-Lester (Independent)
District 33	Sara Hannan		Chris Dimond (Independent)
District 34	Andi Story	Jerry Nankervis
District 35	Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (i)	Richard Wein
District 36	Did not make the ballot: Ghert Abbott	Trevor Shaw	Daniel Ortiz (i) (Independent)
District 37	Bryce Edgmon (i)	William Weatherby
District 38	Tiffany Zulkosky (i)	Darren Deacon
District 39	Neal Foster (i)
District 40	John Lincoln (i) Leanna Mack		Patrick Savok (Nonpartisan)

Write-in candidates[edit]

• Patrick McCormack (D), District 15
• Rick Phillips (Non-affiliated), District 15
• Jake Sloan (R), District 15

Primary candidates[edit]

The candidate list below is based on a candidate filing list provided by the Alaska Division of Elections. The filing deadline for the August primary was on June 1, 2018.^[48]

Alaska House of Representatives Primary Election 2018
Incumbents are marked with an (i) after their name.
Office	Democratic, Libertarian, and Independence	Republican	Other
District 1	Kathryn Dodge	Wolfgang Falke Bart LeBon
District 2	Van Lawrence	Steve Thompson (i)
District 3		Tammie Wilson (i)
District 4	Grier Hopkins	Jim Sackett
District 5	Adam Wool (i)	Kevin McKinley
District 6	Ed Alexander	David Talerico (i)
District 7		Colleen Sullivan-Leonard (i)
District 8	James Chesbro Jr. Mark Fish	Mark Neuman (i) Andy Murr
District 9	Bill Johnson	George Rauscher (i) Jim Colver Pamela Goode
District 10	Patricia Faye-Brazel Neal Lacy	David Eastman (i)
District 11	Eileen Patterson	DeLena Johnson (i) Edna Devries
District 12	Stephany Jeffers	Cathy Tilton (i)
District 13	Danyelle Kimp	Craig Christenson Bill Cook Nancy Dahlstrom
District 14	Joe Hackenmueller	Jamie Allard Eugene Harnett Kelly Merrick
District 15	Lyn Franks   Patrick McCormack Rick Phillips	Gabrielle LeDoux (i) Aaron Weaver
District 16	Ivy Spohnholz (i)	Stanley Wright
District 17	Andy Josephson (i)	Marcus Sanders
District 18	Harriet Drummond (i)	Anthony Lekanof
District 19	Geran Tarr (i) Cean Stevens
District 20	Zack Fields   Cliff Groh Elias Rojas Warren West	Ceezar Martinson
District 21	Matt Claman (i)	Marilyn Stewart
District 22	Dustin Darden	Sara Rasmussen Liz Vazquez
District 23	Chris Tuck (i)	Connie Dougherty Forrest McDonald
District 24	Sue Levi	Charles Kopp (i) Stephen Duplantis
District 25	Pat Higgins	Charisse Millett (i) Josh Revak
District 26	Hunter Dunn	Albert Fogle Joe Riggs Laddie Shaw
District 27	Liz Snyder	Lance Pruitt (i) Donald Jones
District 28	Amber Lee	Jennifer Johnston (i) Ross P. Bieling
District 29	Shawn Butler	Ben Carpenter Wayne Ogle
District 30		Gary A. Knopp (i)
District 31	Paul Seaton (i)	John Cox Hank Kroll Sarah Vance
District 32	Dennis Harris	Louise Stutes (i) Rich Walker
District 33	Steven Handy Sara Hannan James Hart Tom Morphet
District 34	Rob Edwardson Andi Story	Jerry Nankervis
District 35	Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (i)	Kenny Karl Skaflestad Richard Wein
District 36	Ghert Abbott	Trevor Shaw
District 37	Bryce Edgmon (i)	Stan Swetzof William Weatherby
District 38	Tiffany Zulkosky (i) Did not make the ballot: Zach Fansler	Darren Deacon
District 39	Neal Foster (i)
District 40	John Lincoln (i)

Margins of victory[edit]

See also: Margin of victory analysis for the 2018 state legislative elections

A margin of victory (MOV) analysis for the 2018 Alaska House of Representatives races is presented in this section. MOV represents the percentage of total votes that separated the winner and the second-place finisher. For example, if the winner of a race received 47 percent of the vote and the second-place finisher received 45 percent of the vote, the MOV is 2 percent.

The table below presents the following figures for each party:

• Elections won
• Elections won by less than 10 percentage points
• Elections won without opposition
• Average margin of victory^[49]

Alaska House of Representatives: 2018 Margin of Victory Analysis
Party	Elections won	Elections won by less than 10%	Unopposed elections	Average margin of victory[49]
Democratic	16	6	1	17.8%
Republican	23	5	3	25.0%
Other	1	0	0	20.8%
Total	40	11	4	21.2%

The margin of victory in each race is presented below. The list is sorted from the closest MOV to the largest (including unopposed races).

Alaska House of Representatives: 2018 Margin of Victory by District
District	Winning Party	Losing Party	Margin of Victory
Alaska House of Representatives District 1	Republican	Democratic	0.0%
Alaska House of Representatives District 27	Republican	Democratic	2.4%
Alaska House of Representatives District 25	Republican	Democratic	4.0%
Alaska House of Representatives District 33	Democratic	Independent	5.6%
Alaska House of Representatives District 22	Republican	Independent	6.1%
Alaska House of Representatives District 34	Democratic	Republican	6.2%
Alaska House of Representatives District 5	Democratic	Republican	6.5%
Alaska House of Representatives District 23	Democratic	Republican	6.6%
Alaska House of Representatives District 4	Democratic	Republican	8.4%
Alaska House of Representatives District 21	Democratic	Republican	9.4%
Alaska House of Representatives District 15	Republican	Democratic	9.6%
Alaska House of Representatives District 31	Republican	Democratic	10.6%
Alaska House of Representatives District 16	Democratic	Republican	10.8%
Alaska House of Representatives District 38	Democratic	Republican	11.6%
Alaska House of Representatives District 35	Democratic	Republican	14.2%
Alaska House of Representatives District 28	Republican	Democratic	15.0%
Alaska House of Representatives District 6	Republican	Democratic	19.0%
Alaska House of Representatives District 17	Democratic	Republican	19.2%
Alaska House of Representatives District 32	Republican	Democratic	19.5%
Alaska House of Representatives District 36	Independent	Republican	20.8%
Alaska House of Representatives District 24	Republican	Democratic	21.0%
Alaska House of Representatives District 26	Republican	Democratic	25.2%
Alaska House of Representatives District 14	Republican	Democratic	25.9%
Alaska House of Representatives District 37	Democratic	Republican	29.4%
Alaska House of Representatives District 18	Democratic	Republican	29.9%
Alaska House of Representatives District 2	Republican	Democratic	32.7%
Alaska House of Representatives District 19	Democratic	Libertarian	35.3%
Alaska House of Representatives District 10	Republican	Democratic	35.5%
Alaska House of Representatives District 20	Democratic	Republican	36.4%
Alaska House of Representatives District 29	Republican	Democratic	38.1%
Alaska House of Representatives District 40	Democratic	Nonpartisan	38.2%
Alaska House of Representatives District 9	Republican	Democratic	42.2%
Alaska House of Representatives District 13	Republican	Democratic	42.4%
Alaska House of Representatives District 11	Republican	Democratic	44.3%
Alaska House of Representatives District 12	Republican	Democratic	50.7%
Alaska House of Representatives District 8	Republican	Democratic	55.7%
Alaska House of Representatives District 3	Republican	None	Unopposed
Alaska House of Representatives District 30	Republican	None	Unopposed
Alaska House of Representatives District 39	Democratic	None	Unopposed
Alaska House of Representatives District 7	Republican	None	Unopposed

Seats flipped[edit]

See also: State legislative seats that changed party control, 2018

The below map displays each seat in the Alaska House of Representatives which changed partisan hands as a result of the 2018 elections, shaded according to the partisan affiliation of the winner in 2018. Hover over a shaded district for more information.

State legislative seats flipped in 2018, Alaska House of Representatives
District	Incumbent	2018 winner	Direction of flip
Alaska House of Representatives District 1	Scott Kawasaki	Bart Lebon	D to R
Alaska House of Representatives District 22	Jason Grenn	Sara Rasmussen	Independent to R
Alaska House of Representatives District 31	Paul Seaton	Sarah Vance	D to R

Incumbents retiring[edit]

Nine incumbents did not run for re-election in 2018.^[50] Those incumbents were:

Name	Party	Current Office
Scott Kawasaki	Democratic	House District 1
David Guttenberg	Democratic	House District 4
Dan Saddler	Republican	House District 13
Lora Reinbold	Republican	House District 14
Les Gara	Democratic	House District 20
Chris Birch	Republican	House District 26
Mike Chenault	Republican	House District 29
Sam Kito	Democratic	House District 33
Justin Parish	Democratic	House District 34

2018 battleground chamber[edit]

See also: State legislative battleground chambers, 2018

Ballotpedia identified the Alaska House of Representatives as one of 22 battleground chambers in 2018. These were chambers that we anticipated to be, overall, more competitive than other chambers and had the potential to see significant shifts in party control.

The chamber was selected because it met the following conditions:

• Competitive seats: In 2016, four seats won by Democrats and one seat won by an independent had a margin of victory that was less than 10 percent. Two Republican seats had a margin of victory less than 10 percent. See the 2018 races to watch here.

• Competitive statewide race: Electoral ratings organizations expected the Alaska gubernatorial race to be competitive. The governor's office was held by Bill Walker (I) from 2015 to 2018, a Republican from 2002 to 2014 and a Democrat from 1994 to 2002. Read more about the 2018 gubernatorial race here.

• Majority held 55 percent of seats: The Democratic-led coalition controlled 22 of 40 seats, which is 55 percent of the total.

• 2016 presidential election results: Donald Trump (R) won four districts that elected Democrats to the state House and two districts that elected independents. Hillary Clinton (D) did not win any Republican-controlled districts. See the 2016 presidential results in state legislative districts here.

• Recent party control switches: The chamber flipped from Republican to Democratic control in 2016.
  
  

Battleground races[edit]

Alaska House of Representatives Battleground races
Democratic seats
District 5
District 16
District 21
District 34
Republican seats
District 25
District 27
Independent seats
District 22
District 31
District 36

Ballotpedia identified nine battleground races in the Alaska House of Representatives 2018 elections: four Democratic seats, two Republican seats, and three independent seats. Based on analysis of these districts' electoral histories, these races had the potential to be more competitive than other races and could possibly have led to shifts in a chamber's partisan balance.

To determine state legislative battleground races in 2018, Ballotpedia looked for races that fit one or more of the four factors listed below:

1. If the incumbent won less than 55 percent of the vote in the most recent election prior to 2018
2. If the presidential candidate opposite of the incumbent's party won the district in the 2016 elections and the incumbent’s margin of victory in the previous election was 10 percentage points or less
3. If the presidential candidate opposite of the incumbent's party won the district in the 2016 elections and the incumbent did not file to run for re-election
4. If the presidential candidate opposite of the incumbent's party won the district in the 2016 elections by 20 points or more

Other factors could also cause a race to be classified as a battleground. For example, Ballotpedia may have considered an election to be a battleground race if an outside group or a national or state party announced that they were targeting a specific seat in order to flip it. We may have also determined a race to be a battleground if it received an unusual amount of media attention. Two additional factors were open seats and districts impacted by redistricting.

District 5[edit]

Who won this race?

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District 16[edit]

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District 21[edit]

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District 22[edit]

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District 25[edit]

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District 27[edit]

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District 31[edit]

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District 34[edit]

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District 36[edit]

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Battleground races map[edit]

Alaska political history[edit]

See also: Partisan composition of state houses and State government trifectas

Party control[edit]

2018[edit]

2016[edit]

In the 2016 elections, Republicans saw their numerical majority drop from 23-16 with one independent to 21-17 with two independents. Gains by Democrats and independents allowed the 17 Democrats to form a majority coalition with three Republicans and two independents. The coalition had a 22-18 advantage over Republicans and gave Democrats effective control of the chamber.

Trifectas[edit]

A state government trifecta is a term that describes single-party government, when one political party holds the governor's office and has majorities in both chambers of the legislature in a state government. Alaska came under divided government in 2014 when Alaska elected independent Bill Walker as governor. From 1992 to 2017, Alaska was under trifecta control for six years, with Republicans controlling the state from 2003 to 2006 and from 2013 to 2014.

Wave election analysis[edit]

See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)

The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?

Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.

Applying this definition to state legislative elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose 494 seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.

The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 10 state legislative waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.

Candidate and office information[edit]

Process to become a candidate[edit]

See also: Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Alaska

The first page of a declaration of candidacy form for Alaska state legislative candidates.

See statutes: Title 15.25 of the Alaska Election Law

Party candidates[edit]

A member of a political party who wishes to become a candidate for office in a primary election must file a declaration of candidacy. This declaration must be made under oath before an authorized officer and must be filed with the Alaska Division of Elections. The form must be delivered in person or by mail at or before 5:00 p.m. on June 1 of the year in which the general election is taking place.^[55][56]

At the time of filing a declaration of candidacy, a candidate must pay a nonrefundable filing fee to the Alaska Division of Elections. For the offices of governor, lieutenant governor, United States Senator, and United States Representative, the filing fee is $100. The filing fee for state legislative candidates is $30. Candidates must also submit a financial disclosure form (for further information on campaign finance requirements, see this article).^[57]

Independent candidates[edit]

Independent candidates are nominated by petition. An independent candidate must first submit a filing notification form by June 1 of the year in which the general election is taking place. The candidate must then collect petition signatures. Signature requirements vary according to the office being sought. For state executive and federal offices, a candidate must submit a petition containing signatures from qualified voters equivalent to at least 1 percent of the number of voters who cast ballots in the preceding general election. For state legislative offices, a candidate must submit a petition containing signatures from qualified voters of the relevant district equivalent to 1 percent of the number of voters who cast ballots in that district in the preceding general election (a nominating petition must contain at least 50 signatures).^[58][59]

The completed petition must be filed with the Alaska Division of Elections at or before 5:00 p.m. on the day of the primary election in the year in which the general election is held.^[60]

Write-in candidates[edit]

A write-in candidate must file a declaration of intent with the Alaska Division of Elections. The form must be filed no later than five days prior to the general election. A write-in candidate must also file a financial disclosure statement alongside the declaration of intent. If a write-in candidate is running for governor, the candidate must file a joint declaration of intent with a candidate for lieutenant governor.^[61][61]

Qualifications[edit]

See also: State legislature candidate requirements by state

Article II, Section 2 of the Alaska Constitution states: A member of the legislature shall be a qualified voter who has been a resident of Alaska for at least three years and of the district from which elected for at least one year, immediately preceding his filing for office. A representative shall be at least twenty-one years of age.

Salaries and per diem[edit]

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

When sworn in[edit]

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Alaska legislators assume office on the second Monday in January following a presidential election year and on the third Tuesday in January following a gubernatorial election year.^[62]

Competitiveness[edit]

Every year, Ballotpedia uses official candidate lists from each state to examine the competitiveness of every state legislative race in the country. Nationally, there has been a steady decline in electoral competitiveness since 2010. Most notable is that the number of districts with general election competition has dropped by more than 10 percent.

Results from 2016[edit]

Below is Ballotpedia's 2016 competitiveness analysis. Click here to read the full study »

Historical context[edit]

See also: Competitiveness in State Legislative Elections: 1972-2014

Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.

Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.

Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.

Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.

Pivot Counties[edit]

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states. No counties in Alaska are Pivot Counties.

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Alaska with 51.3 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 36.6 percent. Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson received 5.9 percent, which was his third-best showing in a state in 2016.^[63] From when it gained statehood in 1959 to 2017, Alaska voted Republican in 14 out of 15 presidential elections. The only time it voted Democratic was in 1964 when President Lyndon Johnson (D) defeated Senator Barry Goldwater (R) with 61.1 percent of the national vote.^[64] From 1960 to 2016, Alaska voted for the winning presidential candidate in 60 percent of presidential elections.

Presidential results by legislative district[edit]

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Alaska. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.^[65][66]

See also[edit]

• Alaska House of Representatives
• Alaska State Legislature
• State legislative elections, 2018
• Alaska state legislative Democratic primaries, 2018
• Alaska state legislative Republican primaries, 2018

External links[edit]

Suggest a link

• Alaska State Legislature

Footnotes[edit]

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