Alaskan candidates running for governor in 2026 are presented below in alphabetical order. Click on a candidate’s name to see their answer to the highlighted question below. A handful of candidates chose not to answer this survey question, which aims to inform Alaska Watchman readers on where they stand.
Would you ever support some form of a statewide sales tax? Please explain.
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Candidate answers begin below…
TOM BEGICH [D]
The candidate chose not to answer.
CLICK BISHOP [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
DAVE BRONSON [R]
A statewide sales tax might appear fair on paper, but Alaska already has one of the highest costs of living in the country. Families are struggling with energy, housing, and transportation costs. At the same time, government spending per resident in Alaska is higher than nearly every other state. That tells me the problem is not a lack of revenue. The problem is that government is not delivering the results Alaskans deserve for the money already being spent. Before asking working families to pay more through new taxes, we need to prove we can manage the money we already have responsibly. My focus would be controlling spending, improving outcomes in education and infrastructure, and growing the private economy so Alaskans can thrive without new taxes.
MATT CLAMAN [D]
The candidate chose not to answer.
ADAM CRUM [R]
I do not start with a statewide sales tax; I start with saying “no” to bloated bureaucracy and sloppy budgeting.
Alaska’s deficit is a spending discipline problem as much as a revenue problem. I ran two major state departments. I know where the waste is. Before we ask Alaskans to pay more, we demonstrate that government spends what it has, wisely. I have not seen that case made.
Aggressive resource development is the path I intend to lead. I believe we can build our way to fiscal stability without broad-based taxes.
I will not rule out any fiscal tool in every conceivable future scenario. But any sales tax conversation requires a hard constitutional spending cap, a real sunset provision, and proof that every other option has been exhausted. A sales tax without those conditions is just a blank check for bigger government.
NANCY DAHLSTROM [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
EDNA DEVRIES [R]
Probably not without major reduction and self-examination of the WHOLE budget process.
Prior to a discussion regarding putting more demands on our hard-working families, whether it is statewide sales tax , income tax, or some other method to take monies out of the pockets of our citizens, our first attention and efforts need to be focused on the expenditure side of the equation.
MEDA DEWITT [NON/IND]
No. A statewide sales tax is the wrong tool for Alaska. It is regressive, it hits rural families paying $10 for milk and $8 for gas hardest, and it layers state tax on top of the local sales taxes that communities already depend on. Governor Dunleavy’s proposal would have Alaskans subsidizing a $1.5 billion deficit created by his own unfunded PFD promises. That is not a fiscal plan. That is asking working families to pay for political theater.
Alaska does not have a revenue problem. It has a discipline problem. We are sitting on an $85 billion Fund, spending too fast, paying $880 million a year in management fees, and skipping inflation-proofing. Before the state asks a single Alaskan for a dollar in new taxes, it needs to cap the draw, control costs, and stop submitting fantasy budgets. Fix the management first. Then we can talk.
JESSICA FAIRCLOTH [NON/IND]
No, I would not support a statewide sales tax. Sales taxes are regressive. They hit lower-income families the hardest and would raise the cost of basic goods in rural Alaska.
Before our government asks for a single cent in new taxes, we need to demand accountability in spending and make sure Alaska is receiving a fair return from the resources we already own.
MATT HEILALA [R]
I do not support a statewide sales tax. Alaska’s tax policy should have nothing to do with filling fiscal shortfalls and everything to do with what keeps our industry partners, businesses, and families here and thriving. A sales tax would hit working Alaskans and small businesses hardest, drive up costs in a state already facing high living expenses, and send a clear signal that we’re not open for business. We already have the advantage of no state income or sales tax. Let’s protect and leverage that competitive edge instead of copying failed policies from other states. Predictability for oil & gas, mining, and every sector is what grows revenue. Constant saber-rattling about new taxes only accelerates the brain drain and capital flight. The fiscal gap isn’t a math problem to be solved by taxing Alaskans more; it’s an opportunity problem to be solved by unlocking what we already have.
SHELLEY HUGHES [R]
The state’s not responsible with its budget, so how about taking some of yours? That’s what I hear when this topic surfaces. Here’s the real question: “With a heap of taxes, will my kids be able to stay here?”
Alaskans carry one of the highest costs of living in the country, and every unexpected price increase lands directly on their kitchen tables. The idea of a statewide sales tax weighs heavily on me – it would drive families, young workers out of state. Government isn’t living with less, why should Alaskans?
Let’s not ask households to pay more, let’s get our fiscal house in order in Juneau. Let’s talk private sector opportunity to correct the lopsided tip toward a heavy public sector. More private lands, cheap energy, needed infrastructure will expand mining, timber, ag, value-added processing, new industry. These steps grow the private economy and the revenue stream without burdening families.
JONATHAN KREISS-TOMKINS [D]
The candidate chose not to answer.
HENRY F. “HANK” KROLL [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
JAMES PARKIN [R]
NO!!!! I will not approve the mistake of taxing Alaskans. Through the indirect payment of our natural resource funds, Alaskans contribute more to their state services than any other citizens in the nation. Asking for a state income tax on top of that isn’t just a policy error—it’s an insult to the “owner-state” contract. History shows that taxes don’t solve debt; with federal rates up to 37%, the government is still $38 trillion in the hole. A state income tax would crush young families and stifle the innovation Alaska needs. The “Plan for Alaskan Prosperity” (question 1 answer) will eliminate the need for taxes. We have nothing to lose! What we are doing doesn’t work! It’s time to stop stealing from the people (the PFD and taxes). Stop doing the same things and expecting different results. Let’s reform the system, protect your paycheck, and finally manage Alaska’s wealth responsibly.
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TREG TAYLOR [R]
No. Alaska doesn’t need higher taxes. We need a stronger economy. I’ve already fought as Alaska’s Attorney General to unlock our resources, and as governor I’ll turn that into jobs and revenue without making life more expensive for Alaska families.
BRUCE WALDEN [R]
Would I ever? Sure, in two or three hundred years when all resources have ceased to be profitable. As stated above, this state has trillions upon trillions in resources, and many, I suspect, that have never been tapped. I assert that one great asset is the “gray gold” between the ears of our people. Anyone you meet has a million-dollar idea in their mind but as Alaska is very business unfriendly, those ideas cannot be developed… yet. We’ll tear down the artificial firewalls and we’ll root out corruption in this regard. I’ve seen it myself up close. I think that if we ever had to go to a tax, a sales tax would be the most fair, but only if, for instance, you had free deed to your property. Why? Because, let’s say you buy a parcel of land. You pay what you pay, and the sales tax. But if…
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(EDITOR’S NOTE: This answer was cut off after reaching the 150-word response limit.)
BERNADETTE WILSON [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
2 Comments
That was easy to det4rmine as to who to vote for and not to vote for! That one questions serves as reminder of servitude to a governor and state that today is so out of control. Why does anyone want that pattern to continue and grow to the detriment of every Alaskan! The question was good and a person sees a lot in those that answer or don’t answer.
Everyone who chose not to answer is OUT.