Alaska Public Media

The number of Democrats running for governor of Alaska grew to two on Monday as Anchorage state Sen. Matt Claman entered the race. Claman, an attorney, has represented West Anchorage in the Legislature for more than a decade and said in an interview his experience working across the aisle prepares him well for the top job in state government.

“I think that Alaska needs a person with my background and experience and balanced approach to doing what’s best for Alaska,” he said.

Claman is a member of the 14-person Senate majority caucus that includes nine Democrats and five Republicans. He’s chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and in 2024 led the effort to pass a wide-ranging crime bill that, among other things, allows drug dealers to be charged with second-degree murder and allows prosecutors to avoid forcing sexual assault survivors to testify to a grand jury.

The bill included proposals backed by Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who publicly praised it and signed it into law later that year.

Claman said he’d been “actively involved” in 21 pieces of legislation related to public safety. That’ll be one area of emphasis in his campaign, he said.

“I think we’ll be very focused on improving public safety, quality education, strengthening the economy and being fiscally responsible in how we manage state government,” he said.

Claman said he supports an “affordable” Permanent Fund dividend. He said the state’s recent budget turmoil — which pushed dividends down to their lowest inflation-adjusted amount in history — will require the next governor to carefully prioritize his or her budget.

“I think we should pay an affordable dividend, but I also think we need to invest in our public schools and invest in public safety to protect our neighborhoods,” Claman said.

He’s the second Democrat to officially enter the race, following former Anchorage state Sen. Tom Begich. Begich has said he plans to step aside if former Congresswoman Mary Peltola, the last Democrat to win a statewide election, enters the race. It’s unclear if she will.

Claman declined to say what differentiates him from Begich — and also declined to make a similar commitment to exit the race if Peltola enters.

“Mary Peltola is not in the race today, and I’m entering because I believe I’m the best candidate for governor,” he said. “I’m looking forward to a very positive and engaged campaign.”

Claman said he does not plan to resign his Senate seat to run for governor.

Claman is the 14th candidate to formally enter the race. The top four vote-getters in the August 2026 primary, regardless of party, will advance to the ranked choice general election.

Candidates have until June 1 to enter the race. For now, the rest of the field includes, in alphabetical order:

• Democratic former Anchorage state Sen. Tom Begich
• Republican former Fairbanks state Sen. Click Bishop
• Republican former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson
• Republican former Revenue Commissioner Adam Crum
• Republican Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom
• Republican Mat-Su Borough Mayor Edna DeVries
• Republican podiatrist Matt Heilala
• Republican Palmer state Sen. Shelley Hughes
• Republican author Henry Kroll
• Republican former teacher and Angoon resident James Parkin
• Republican former Attorney General Treg Taylor
• Republican former Mat-Su planning commissioner Bruce Walden
• Republican activist and business owner Bernadette Wilson

The Alaska Supreme Court has ordered disgraced former U.S. District Court Judge Joshua Kindred to be disbarred, meaning he is no longer allowed to practice law in Alaska.

In an order published Friday, the three state Supreme Court justices deciding the case agreed with the Alaska Bar Association that Kindred – who resigned in 2024 from a lifetime appointment as a federal judge – should lose his license to practice law in Alaska. Two justices recused themselves.

Kindred did not participate in the formal proceedings, which began when the Bar Association filed a petition for disbarment in mid-September, according to the order and attached documents.

“I think the order itself, it speaks for itself,” said Phil Shanahan, counsel for the Bar Association. “Mr. Kindred didn’t participate, which probably made it a little bit faster than it would have been had a lawyer participated in the process.”

Mirroring a report from the federal 9th Circuit Judicial Council released days after Kindred’s resignation, the 67-page Alaska Supreme Court order includes information about Kindred’s inappropriate, sexualized relationships with two federal prosecutors, including a woman who had served as one of his law clerks. Other allegations included that Kindred created a hostile, sexualized work environment and that he lied to investigators about the relationships, which, in the case of one federal prosecutor, involved her sending him nude photos.

Kindred’s resignation and the unfolding scandal caused the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Alaska, where the two prosecutors worked, to review dozens of cases for potential conflicts of interest. At least two defendants have won new trials, after their attorneys argued inappropriate relationships among federal prosecutors and the judge resulted in their clients getting unfair treatment.

Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is among 40 airports across the country forced to slash air traffic by 10% starting Friday as the government shutdown becomes the longest in U.S. history.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Wednesday that traffic would be cut from the country’s busiest airports to maintain travel safety. Some air traffic controllers, who haven’t received a full paycheck in over a month, are calling out of work, he said, exacerbating staffing shortages and causing flight delays.

Airport officials confirmed by email Thursday that Anchorage International is included among the 40 airports where flights will be reduced. The Anchorage airport is one of the busiest cargo airports in the world. It’s unclear if passenger or cargo flights will be impacted, or both. Airport officials could not immediately be reached Thursday for comment.

In a statement, the state entity that manages the airport, the Alaska International Airport System, said its working to minimize impacts.

“ANC remains fully operational, and all safety and security functions continue without interruption. We are working closely with our federal partners and airline representatives to minimize any impacts to passengers and cargo operations,” said Teri Lindseth, development manager for the Alaska International Airport System.

Travel expert Scott McMurren, who writes the Alaska Travelgram newsletter, said he hasn’t seen this much uncertainty for airline passengers since the disruptions that followed the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

“When the Secretary of Transportation says he predicts ‘mass chaos,’ well, I have to plan for mass chaos,” he said. “That means a lot of flights may get through unscathed, but just because the flight gets through doesn’t mean the travelers themselves aren’t affected.”

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, where many flights to and from the state connect through, is also on the list of airports forced to cut flights.

Alaska Airlines said that it canceled a limited number of flights in response to the Federal Aviation Administration directive, but international flights are not expected to be impacted. The airline said guests whose flights are canceled will be rebooked or get a refund.

Delta said it expects to operate the majority of flights as scheduled. The company is providing extra flexibility for impacted travelers to cancel their flights without penalty. In a statement, United said long-haul international and hub-to-hub flights wouldn’t be impacted by the reduction, but that reductions would impact regional and domestic flights.

Passengers with questions about specific flights should contact their airline.

Liza Sanden put the first weeks of the government shutdown to good use with end-of-summer chores at her East Anchorage home. She pickled beets. She made jam.

“These last two weeks, though, have definitely been – the anxiety has been tripping up,” she said. “When are we going to go back to work? When am I going to get a paycheck again?”

As the government funding lapse became the longest in U.S. history, Sanden is one of thousands of federal workers in Alaska who are on furlough and not getting paid. Thousands of other Alaskan civil servants are working without pay.

Alaska, more than most states, is highly dependent on the federal government, for the services the employees provide and the money that fuels the economy. The state is home to some 15,000 federal workers and the shutdown affects each differently. Many we contacted for this story said they didn’t want to give their names. A few mentioned a silver lining: On furlough they don’t feel as much stress from layoff threats and working in an administration that has low regard for civil service.

One furloughed employee in Anchorage said he has traded the feeling of besiegement for new financial stress as he runs up his credit cards.

Sanden, an employee of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, considers her family luckier than some. She’s taken a furlough gig as a substitute teacher. Her husband collects a pension. They aren’t in danger of losing their house. But without her regular paycheck, the family is economizing. Sanden said her kids are old enough to understand the situation and have pared their Christmas lists.

“When your teenagers ask for $20 LEGO sets, as opposed to Xboxes and new cell phones, I appreciate them, you know, trying to be reasonable,” Sanden said.

She did not want to discuss the politics of the shutdown. Others didn’t mind.

“Even before the shutdown, national parks were facing the biggest staff and budget cuts in history,” said Jason Rogers, a National Park Service archaeologist.

He blames the Trump administration and the Republican leadership in Congress, for the funding lapse and more.

“The administration has imposed new rules censoring what park employees can say about things like gender, like sexual orientation, like basic facts about American history,” he said. “So yes, I’m scared of retribution. But at this point, it’s too important, and I feel like I need to speak out.”

Rogers said the loss of federal pay has cascading effects, beyond the federal workforce.

“My landlord, who doesn’t necessarily pay much attention to politics at all, is suddenly concerned because, of course, he’s worried if I’m going to be able to pay my rent,” Rogers said. “And I’m worried if I’m going to be able to pay my rent.”

The government, he said, has a legal obligation to send backpay when the shutdown ends, but he noticed that the Trump administration is also suggesting that it might not.

“I think at this point, nobody has any guarantees,” he said.

Stephanie Rice, who works for the Bureau of Land Management, has a lot to say. But first her caveat: “I am giving this interview in my personal capacity,” she said, enunciating carefully, “expressing my personal views on a matter of public concern.”

Rice, president of her local union, said that shows she’s exercising her right to free speech and, in theory, shouldn’t face retribution. She doesn’t think her job is safe. Still, she’s calling for action against those in the administration who aren’t spending money as Congress directed.

“They have to impeach these officials,” she said. “If these officials will not follow the law, that is the answer. That is the solution. And Congress has that power.”

Rice and her colleagues are keeping their spirits up by sharing photos of themselves hiking and engaged in hobbies — making, as she put it, lemonade of the furlough.

“They’re really leaning into their volunteer activities,” she said of her co-workers. “They’re getting house projects done. They’re able to spend a little more time with their kids. But it’s still very stressful.”

An extra stress on Interior Department employees is that the administration has already said it intends to fire a lot of them. A judge stopped the government from laying off workers during the shutdown. But once the money starts flowing again, Rice said her particular office within the BLM, which is part of Interior, is slated for a 50% reduction.

“If all we do is hide under our desks — they’re gonna lay me off anyways, so I might as well go down swinging,” she said.

At the U.S. Capitol this week, senators are discussing how to end the shutdown. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters key details are nearing completion.

Senators, like their House counterparts, are slated to be off next week.

The long-planned Donlin Gold mine in Southwest Alaska is the latest Alaska project to gain the support of a federal agency seeking to streamline permitting.

The Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council announced in late October that it had added the massive proposed open-pit mine to a list of projects covered by an obscure Obama-era law meant to speed development, the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act. It’s part of a larger push by the Trump administration to expand resource development in Alaska and around the country.

In an interview, Donlin Gold’s environmental and permitting manager, Enric Fernandez, said the designation will likely not accelerate the mine’s timeline. But the so-called FAST-41 designation gives the company more confidence that it’ll be able to move toward a final investment decision in 2027, he said.

“What the program is going to provide is more certainty on the permitting schedule, you know, and also, you know, accountability for the agencies and transparency on the process,” Fernandez said.

The designation does not allow the mine to skip any steps in the lengthy process to make the mine a reality, he said. Work will begin soon on an updated environmental analysis ordered by a federal court to evaluate the possible impacts of a large spill of mine waste, or tailings, he said.

The project has been in the works for years — the company submitted its first federal permit back in 2012, Fernandez said. The head of the Federal Permitting Council, Emily Domenech, said in an interview that the designation was in line with the Trump administration’s resource development and national security goals.

“Up until this administration, the average time to complete a mine to get through the full federal permitting process was just shy of 30 years, which is just completely unacceptable and makes it impossible for us to really effectively compete with China and other adversaries looking to develop critical minerals around the world,” she said.

The project is controversial. Mine tailings would be stored approximately 10 miles from the Kuskokwim River near the village of Crooked Creek, upstream from communities that depend on the river’s salmon for their food supply. More than a dozen tribal governments and a regional tribal consortium, the Association of Village Council Presidents, have opposed the mine, and some have challenged it in court citing the potential for contamination.

“This insensitive federal action is particularly inappropriate while our region’s Tribes are waiting on the mine’s federal permitting agencies to address flaws identified by a federal court and, more importantly, responding to the humanitarian crisis following the hit our region took from Typhoon Halong,” the Mother Kuskokwim Tribal Coalition said in a statement. “A rushed permitting process threatens to override critical environmental protections and silence Yukon-Kuskokwim communities who depend on healthy rivers for survival.”

Some other tribal groups have backed it — notably, the Calista Corp. which owns the resources the mine would target. The company says it would generate royalties for the Native corporation and its shareholders across the region and Alaska Native corporation shareholders across the state, and improve the region’s economy.

Environmental groups have also opposed the mine. Lindsey Bloom with the group SalmonState said in an interview the fast-track designation was inappropriate for a gold mine.

“Gold is not a critical mineral,” she said. “There’s plenty of it already, and … whether or not we develop Donlin will have no effect on our national security.”

Bloom said she saw the designation as an effort to make the project more attractive to investors.

People who rely on food assistance from SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, could have their electronic benefits cards refilled as soon as this week. Gov. Mike Dunleavy issued a state disaster declaration Monday in an effort to free up state funds to make up for federal money delayed by the Trump administration amid the government shutdown.

“The interruption of these benefits would create an immediate threat of food insecurity and hardship, jeopardize the health and well-being of a substantial population within the state, and a direct threat to public health,” Dunleavy wrote in the disaster declaration.

The roughly 66,000 Alaskans who participate in the federally funded, state-run SNAP program did not have their cards refilled on Saturday as scheduled. Until this weekend, the Trump administration said that funding for the program would run out Nov. 1.

On Friday, two federal judges ordered the administration to tap a contingency fund to at least partially fund SNAP benefits. But the Trump administration says it’ll take time for that money to be distributed, and the administration says it only has enough money to fund half of SNAP recipients’ typical benefits.

Dunleavy’s disaster declaration allows the state to refill benefit cards with state funds quickly and offer money to food banks around the state already stressed by the response to ex-Typhoon Halong and the federal government shutdown.

State House Speaker Bryce Edgmon, an Independent from Dillingham, said in a phone interview it was clear the state needed to act to help Alaskans struggling to put food on the table.

“Compelling stories all around the state of single families and elderly people and others not being able to get food because their cards had run out, you know, were already beginning to come to light, so we knew we had to act quickly,” he said. “I’m really pleased working with the governor and Senate President (Gary) Stevens, that we were able to put our heads together and make this happen.”

Dunleavy previously said it would likely take weeks for any state money to flow to beneficiaries. But on Sunday, Edgmon said, the contractor that handles SNAP cards told the state that recipients’ debit cards could be reloaded much sooner.

As of Monday afternoon, a Department of Health spokesperson, Shirley Sakaye, estimated cards could be refilled by Friday, Nov. 7.

Edgmon said the disaster declaration eliminates the need for a special legislative session to address the issue. Lawmakers and the governor had floated a special session as a possibility as they considered ways to ensure food assistance continued to flow.

Stevens, the Senate president, said the money would likely come from already-appropriated but unused funds in the Division of Public Assistance. Stevens said lawmakers would seek to replace the money with a new appropriation when lawmakers return to Juneau in January. He said he hoped the federal government would reimburse the state at a later date.

The solution is temporary, Stevens said, and likely not sustainable in the long term if the federal government remains closed. The program costs around $8 million per week, he said.

“It would be problematic for us to fill that amount of money on an ongoing basis,” Stevens said.

Democrats and Republicans in Congress have yet to come to an agreement to restore funding for the federal government in a dispute over expiring federal health insurance subsidies. How long the shutdown will last remains an open question.