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. Several candidates chose not to participate.
The current Dunleavy Administration grappled with many unexpected challenges associated with COVID-19. Identify two things you would have done differently to protect personal liberty during the pandemic.
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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]
During COVID and as Mayor of Anchorage, I fought to protect personal liberty by opposing vaccine and mask mandates and working to keep Anchorage businesses open. My administration pushed back every day against overreach from the Anchorage Assembly because I believed decisions should stay as close to the people as possible.
Governor Dunleavy and I faced an unprecedented crisis, and worked to balance health and freedom. I support his efforts. But like any emergency response, there are lessons to look back on, particularly around consistency, communication, and ensuring government never oversteps personal liberty.
I would have expanded direct communication to Alaskans by clearly laying out all data, the risks, and individual options without bias, so people could make informed decisions for themselves.
I’ve always believed government should trust its people. As governor, I would bring the same governance that I did as Mayor.
MATT CLAMAN [D]
The candidate chose not to answer.
ADAM CRUM [R]
As Health Commissioner, I was in charge of Alaska’s COVID response. We never had statewide mask or vaccine mandates, neither of which work across a population. But I will say that we NEVER EVER should have dared to call one group of workers essential and others not. That was a mistake, and I apologize to all who were harmed by that. We quickly pivoted and opened up Alaska, encouraged travelers to come to the state, fought for resources to make sure fisheries stayed open, and oil kept flowing. And I negotiated deals with cruise lines to return to Southeast Alaska.
The government can never replace the private sector – so the private sector must be protected at all times. If a public health threat comes again, you identify the at-risk population and give them necessary resources, then trust Alaskans to assess risk for themselves and their families.
NANCY DAHLSTROM [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
EDNA DEVRIES [R]
I would have selected a different State Medical Physician and fired Dr. Zink. No mandatory masks. Let everyone, including all businesses, select their own rules, as well as keep places of worship open. Let family visit other family members and not refuse them their last goodbyes.
MEDA DEWITT [NON/IND]
The candidate chose not to answer.
JESSICA FAIRCLOTH [NON/IND]
The candidate chose not to answer.
MATT HEILALA [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
SHELLEY HUGHES [R]
Alaska did better than many states, but the government still overstepped. Its fundamental duty is to protect individual liberty, not substitute its judgment for Alaskans’ free choices.
I would’ve required legislative approval for any extension of a disaster declaration beyond 30 days. No single official should wield unlimited emergency power. The people’s representatives must serve as a check.
I would’ve refused to let government pressure or penalize anyone for health decisions. Medical choices belong to individuals and their doctors, not politicians. Same principle would’ve applied to business owners/consumers. I would’ve encouraged the vulnerable to avoid contact and once the data was clear, urged school and normal routines for others.
Lastly, instead of using all the federal COVID dollars to promote vaccines, I would’ve made health kits available with known vitamins, medication options like other countries were doing with great success.
The principle of freedom must guide every government action.
JONATHAN KREISS-TOMKINS [D]
The candidate chose not to answer.
HENRY F. “HANK” KROLL [R]
I would explain to people that wearing face masks is optional and a matter of personal preference. I would say you don’t have to wear a face mask outdoors or while driving your car because the virus didn’t contaminate the entire world. Meanwhile, the news media and Dr. Fauci were threatening everyone with a life-or-death choice to take the shot or die. Donald Trump was treated with Regeneron’s Antibody Cocktail (REGN-COV2): An experimental cocktail of two monoclonal antibodies (casirivimab and imdevimab). Remdesivir: An antiviral drug administered for five days, authorized for hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Later, we find out that hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin, inexpensive drugs administered to prevent malaria, worked better and didn’t cause long Covid.
JAMES PARKIN [R]
This is how I would have and will proceed in such circumstances:
Leadership is about trust, not force. For too long, the government has acted to the people not for them. My approach to public health is rooted in respect for your autonomy and my professional background in the biology of communicable diseases.
Instead of mandates, I champion freedom of choice. Under my administration:
— Schools and businesses remain open; closures are never forced.
— Masking, testing, and vaccines are fully funded but entirely optional.
— Job security is guaranteed for those who choose to stay home, with robust homeschooling support for parents.
— Human dignity is preserved by ensuring you can visit loved ones in hospitals.
I will utilize FARs to provide transparent data and, crucially, to submit major decisions to a public vote. I will move only according to the will of the people. It is time to end permissionless governance.
TREG TAYLOR [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
BRUCE WALDEN [R]
I was in the Dominican Republic four years ago. I didn’t speak Spanish so well, but I do speak passable Russian. There were two channels on my hotel TV that I understood. One was Russian. The other was Fox News. The first thing to show was an Alaska tourism commercial narrated by Mike Dunleavy. He touted the awesomeness of Alaska and stated, “And you can get a vaccine… if you want one.” Now, people being able to choose a questionable vaccine, we have that freedom, but opening with that line tells me all we need to know about how hard Dunleavy fought against this thing. Governor Walden would simply say, as did Florida’s governor, “We’re not going to participate.” When we have an entire Senate treat Laura Reinbold like she had hoof-in-mouth disease because she refused to make up, you see everything you need to see about those who represent us.
BERNADETTE WILSON [R]
The candidate chose not to answer.
