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Yaaḵoosgé Daakahídi High School teacher Electra Gardinier talked to students during a recent mock election in her fourth period U.S. Government class. She had spent the week explaining the different candidates and propositions. Now the students – most of whom are too young to vote – were casting their votes on sample ballots.

“So you have a ballot in front of you, and it looks like what I have in my hand, and on that ballot, it is asking us to vote on Proposition One, Two and Three,” Gardinier told the class. “We just talked about those propositions. It also asks you to vote for your Assembly member and school board members.”

Gardinier tallied up the votes in the school board race after class.

“For the last candidate, it looks like we would not be able to come to a consensus. Oh, no. Jeremy — J. J. J. So J. J. J., Steve Whitney and Jenny Thomas,” she said.

Students also approved all three ballot propositions in this year’s election. 

Gardinier said students that attend Yaaḵoosgé do so because they have been unsuccessful in some part of their education. She said that makes it really important for her to give her students a voice in this class.

“Sometimes that can mean that we have a population that already feels marginalized, academically, let alone how they’re feeling in other aspects of their life,” she said. “And so a lot of times, I fear that that creates this apathetic mentality of like, ‘nothing ever gets better for me. It doesn’t matter how I think. Nobody cares what my views are.’”

Gardinier said she wants students to feel engaged and heard, while also understanding what they are voting on.

“When I’m teaching, I try not to put anything above a sixth grade level. And it’s fascinating to me that a ballot is absolutely written at a level beyond that,” she said. “So I mean, I have kids who are not going to understand what they’re voting for, and that is something that I’m trying to combat.”

How did government students’ votes stack up over at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé?

Eighty students voted in that mock election. They “elected” Jenny Thomas, Melissa Cullum and Steve Whitney to the school board.

For the Juneau Assembly, Nano Brooks eked out a narrow victory over Wade Bryson by one vote in the only contested race. 

As for the ballot propositions, the students approved the first two questions, but narrowly voted down the proposed seasonal sales tax. 

At least one student at JDHS will actually be able to vote this year. 

Samuel Lagerquist filled out his ballot ahead of Election Day. He said the structure of the class helped him learn more about the different candidates and ballot propositions. He said he also learned about how his peers are thinking.

“In this class, I was kind of presented with some different perspectives that I didn’t really think about, mainly concerning the first two ballot measures,” Lagerquist said. “It also offered a really good place to, like, kind of stay updated, and motivated me to stay updated into the actual news.”

Lagerquist said he feels it’s important to vote in a local election, even when statewide and national elections often see larger turnouts.

“The sales tax or ballot initiative ones are gonna have a more, like, day-to-day, actual, real effect on me. And so I think that, honestly, it’s probably more important than, like, your national elections, even though, you know, those are really important,” Lagerquist said.

While he doesn’t plan to be in the state for college, Lagerquist said he plans on voting absentee in next year’s Alaska election, when the governor and two congressional seats will be up for grabs.

Amy Lloyd teaches government at JDHS. She said the results for the mock election were a bit unexpected.

“I thought it was going to be 70/30 and it was more like 50/50 which shows me that they understand the value of their vote, and even if they didn’t say anything in the conversation, they voted how they wanted to vote,” Lloyd said. “So that was pretty cool.”

 She said it’s a big responsibility to teach students about the government. 

“We are living in America, we’ve got to understand the government,” she said. “It’s really exciting to teach a class that is so obviously in their best interest to know and learn and pay attention to.”

Real ballots in Juneau’s by-mail election must be returned by 8 p.m. Tuesday. Initial results are expected later in the evening.

Juneau’s municipal Election Day is almost here — voters have until Tuesday night to cast their ballots. 

There are a handful of ways you can vote in the by-mail election. The city has ballot drop boxes in different locations all across town. Voters can also mail their ballots back or go to a vote center. 

This year’s ballot features three propositions, four candidates running for three open seats on the Assembly and four candidates running for three seats on the school board. One write-in candidate for school board is not featured on the ballot.   

Deputy City Clerk Andi Hirsh said as of Saturday, about 4,600 ballots had been returned.  

“Democracy only works when people participate,” Hirsh said. “This is your chance to really have a say in what our community looks like, and I think it’s really important for every person to be part of that.”

The ballot drop boxes are open until 8 p.m. Tuesday. They are located at City Hall, the AEL&P office in Lemon Creek, Douglas Library, the Mendenhall Valley Public Library and Statter Harbor boat launch. 

Ballots sent in by mail need to be postmarked on or before Election Day and a first-class stamp is required. Vote centers at City Hall and the Valley Library will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday for in-person voting.

Hirsh said the vote centers can get busy on Election Day and people might experience a wait time.

“We do tend to get both a lunch rush and an after work rush,” she said. “So, there tends to be a bit of a line.”

Ballots turned in on Election Day aren’t counted in the unofficial results released that night. They’ll be added to later unofficial result updates. Final results will be certified on Oct. 21.

Find the latest local election coverage at ktoo.org/elections.

Haines might soon join communities across Southeast Alaska that have tweaked their tax policies to shift the local tax burden off year-round residents and onto tourists.

Voters this week will consider a ballot measure that would increase sales tax during the summer, when visitors flock to town, and reduce the rate in winter. Sweetening the deal is a provision that would exempt groceries from sales tax entirely during the winter months.

“Over the course of a year the visitors and seasonal residents will pay more and year-round residents (depending on who they are and what they buy when) should pay less or the same as they do now,” Haines Borough Finance Director Jila Stuart said in an email on Thursday.

Local sales tax in Haines is currently set at 5.5%. If the measure passes, it would boost the rate to 7% between April and the end of September. The rate would fall to 4.5% for the rest of the year – excluding groceries, which would not be subject to sales tax at all in winter.

The goal is to raise funds for two key purposes: school funding and road improvements.

“I think it’s an agreeable enough deal, in so much as folks will get 5.5% off groceries all winter long, and they’ll get 1% off everything else,” Haines Mayor Tom Morphet said in an interview this week.

Morphet has been a major proponent of the provision, which is modeled after versions adopted in communities across Southeast. Among them are Craig, Pelican, Seldovia, Ketchikan, Sitka and Skagway – Haines’ closest neighbor.

Each seasonal sales tax looks slightly different. But the goal generally speaking is to take advantage of the busy summer season to generate local tax revenue.

Consumers in Skagway for instance, currently pay a 5% sales tax in the summer and 3% in the winter. But that could soon change. On the Skagway ballot this year is a measure that would boost summer sales tax by another 2%. In exchange, the borough would waive local utility fees.

Juneau voters, for their part, will soon weigh in on their own seasonal sales tax proposal, which would bump sales tax from 5% to 7.5% in the summer and drop it to 3% during winter.

Morphet has done a handful of public presentations about the tax. He said he has heard some concerns, including extra administrative costs for businesses, and that the tax could discourage people from shopping in Haines.

All told, the tax is expected to generate about $280 thousand dollars – which amounts to a 6% boost to local sales tax revenue, according to the borough.

Morphet acknowledged that 6% is an “incremental” figure. But he emphasized it’s still a crucial sum given that the borough is grappling with a $1 million budget deficit that he says has to be made up somewhere.

The deficit is due in part to federal funding cuts and a senior tax exemption passed by voters last year. But it also resulted from the borough needing to kick in more than half a million dollars more for the school this year compared to last, to make up for insufficient state funding.

That’s a challenge facing communities across Alaska.

“Communities are responding by adopting a seasonal sales tax,” Morphet said. “In Craig, the seasonal sales tax goes entirely to the school. And you know, until we have a new governor, our hands are going to be tied.”

If passed, the Haines borough expects that year-round residents would spend roughly the same amount in sales tax that they currently do.

Someone who spends $30,000 per year on taxable goods and services – $7,000 of which is groceries – would spend about $80 less on tax under the new structure, according to a borough fact sheet.

That could look different depending on the person. The math might not pencil out as well for someone who spends a lot on gasoline in the summer, for instance, as opposed to groceries.

Former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson is joining the race for governor. He announced his candidacy Thursday as he kicked off a two-day series of events in Fairbanks, Wasilla, Anchorage and Soldotna.

“I’ve tackled crime, I’ve taken on homelessness, I brought record investment to our city and I’ve shown that when you put the people first, government can work in the way it was intended,” Bronson said at the Anchorage event Friday morning. “That’s why I’m running for governor. To put Anchorage first, to put Alaska first, and to fight for a smarter, stronger government that serves the people, not the other way around.”

Bronson is running as a Republican and said in a news release that he plans to focus on economic growth, infrastructure, affordable housing, education and “protecting the Permanent Fund Dividend.”

In a crowded field that includes 12 Republicans, Bronson said he shared many of his competitors’ values and policy priorities, but he said his experience as mayor sets him apart.

“I’m the only one that’s had that executive experience,” he said. “Others have legislative experience, and that is important, don’t get me wrong, and others had some small business experience, but at the end of the day, chief executive experience within the government realm is fairly unique.”

Bronson rode a wave of pandemic-induced frustration to be elected to lead the state’s largest city, serving as Anchorage mayor from 2021 to 2024. He frequently clashed with the left-leaning Anchorage Assembly over the city’s approach to COVID-19 and homelessness, and faced accusations of creating a hostile work environment, resulting in numerous wrongful termination lawsuits and high amounts of staff turnover across departments.

He lost a bid for reelection to former Assembly chair Suzanne LaFrance last year.

Bronson said he expected to work closely with Republican caucuses in the state Legislature if elected.

“I’ve worked with the Legislature as mayor, many of the same folks in Juneau, and they’re far more reasonable and rational than the Assembly was,” he said. “I think it’ll be easier. It’ll be tough, but it won’t be irrational.”

Gov. Mike Dunleavy appointed Bronson head of the Anchorage International Airport in January. He left the role in September.

Dunleavy is term-limited and cannot seek reelection. Candidates have until June 1 to join the race.

Juneau voters will decide in this fall’s municipal election whether to exempt essential food and residential utilities from local sales tax. Economists say that taxes on food hit low-income people the hardest. 

Whether you head to Costco, Foodland or Fred Meyer or any other grocery store in Juneau, you pay a 5% tax on most of the food you buy. And, when you go to pay your water or heating bill, you’re taxed the same on that, too. 

Right now, Juneau’s city government taxes food and utilities like just about everything else – at 5%. But, if voters choose to pass Proposition 2 on the local ballot this year, that tax would drop to zero percent for everyone, regardless of their income. 

Daniel Parks, the executive director of the Southeast Alaska Food Bank, said food insecurity is impacting more and more Juneauites every year. 

“On a local level, we’re facing the highest amount of demand that we’ve ever faced here,” he said. “More and more people that you would have once thought of as firmly in the middle class are sliding into food insecurity.”

Park said he thinks the proposition could have a positive impact. 

The proposed food exemptions would apply to items under the same definition as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP or food stamps. It would also apply to residential electricity, heating oil or propane, water and sewer and garbage and recycling. Senior citizens are already able to apply for these exemptions.

Angela Rodell is the treasurer of the Affordable Juneau Coalition, a group of advocates who gathered enough signatures to put the question on the ballot. She says Juneau should have removed the tax a long time ago. 

“This is probably one of the most regressive tax things we have here in Juneau,” she said.  

She said the change would be immediately felt by residents and would make Juneau more affordable. 

 “I think when you start to feel like costs are coming back your way, when you feel like you have just a little bit of extra money, you feel better about participating in the community, participating with the nonprofits, supporting churches and trails and arts and all of those things,” she said.

Juneau Assembly member Neil Steininger is an economist, and he supports the concept.

“We don’t have the supply chains that can provide us lower-cost food, like a lot of areas down south do,” he said. “That really impacts your day-to-day living, because you got to eat every day.”

According to city estimates, the average person would save approximately $300 per year.   

But there’s a flip side to the change. The current 5% tax on food and utilities brings in quite a bit of revenue to the city — to the tune of a combined $9 to $11 million annually. 

“That is huge. That is a big number. Just to give some context,” said Assembly member Christine Woll. 

She said removing that tax would leave a serious hole in the city’s budget. 

“There is no way that we could exempt food and utilities without significant reduction to what the city provides its citizens,” she said. 

It’s unclear what services the Assembly might choose to cut. It would make those decisions after the election.

But, in hopes of offsetting those decisions before they come to fruition, the Assembly is asking voters to implement a new seasonal sales tax system to neutralize the estimated revenue loss. The proposed system is meant to take advantage of the summer tourists while also giving some winter relief to year-round residents.

“The seasonal sales tax basically will make up for that $9 to $12 million revenue loss by shifting the tax burden from residents to our summer visitors,” she said.

Rodell disagrees. She said a reduction in revenue will force the Assembly to pay closer attention to how it spends taxpayers’ money — something she doesn’t think they’ve been doing a good job at. 

“I’m a strong no on the seasonal sales tax because of the way it needs to go back to the drawing board,” she said. “They need to do a better job about defining how it’s going to help the residents of this community.”

The last day to vote in Juneau’s by-mail election is Tuesday, Oct. 7.

Find the latest local election coverage at ktoo.org/elections.

Election day is around the corner for most of Alaska’s local governments, and many communities are considering whether to raise local sales taxes to pay for the escalating cost of public services, including basic infrastructure like road repairs and landfills.

Alaska’s largest city, Anchorage, holds its elections in the spring, as do Valdez and Cordova, but most of the state’s 150-plus municipal governments will have their elections in the next week.

In the state capital, Juneau, where voting has been underway by mail since late September, voters are considering three ballot measures with major implications for the City and Borough of Juneau budget.

Measure No. 1 would tighten the cap on local property taxes below current rates, effectively cutting city revenue by about $1 million and eliminating the city’s ability to raise rates.

The second measure would exempt food and residential utilities from local sales taxes. That would eliminate between $10 million and $12 million per year from the city budget.

To compensate, there’s also Measure No. 3, which would raise the city’s sales tax from 5% to 7.5% in the summer and lower it to 3% in the winter. If that measure passes, it would roughly balance the lost money if Measure No. 2 passes.

If ballot measure No. 3 doesn’t pass, Juneau city officials expect to significantly cut local services in order to balance the budget.

Juneau is one of several communities deciding whether to pass sales tax hikes this month.

In Skagway, voters are considering a seasonal sales tax increase from 5% to 7% in the summer, with some of the proceeds earmarked for water, wastewater and garbage services in order to lower local rates.

In neighboring Haines, voters are deciding whether to raise the local sales tax from 5.5% to 7% in the summer within the Haines townsite, with a smaller increase in the rest of the borough. The sales tax would fall to 4.5% in the townsite during the winter, 3% in the rest of the borough, and groceries would be exempted.

In Ketchikan, borough residents are being asked whether they want to extend part of the local sales tax through 2032. The borough has a 2.5% sales tax, but half of a percent is dedicated to construction and renovation projects at local schools. That’s what voters will consider renewing.

Slightly north, in Petersburg, voters will decide whether to reduce a senior citizen sales tax exemption so it applies only to low-income residents.

Ketchikan city voters consider seven ballot measures. While voters in the Ketchikan borough contemplate a sales tax measure, voters within the city of Ketchikan itself will also have seven other ballot propositions to consider.

First is a $15 million bond to pay for sewer mains and upgrades to the city’s water treatment facility. Those upgrades are being mandated by the state and federal governments.

Voters in the First City also will decide six different amendments to the city charter. Proposition No. 2 would eliminate a 30-day waiting period for city ordinances to take effect. No. 3 would allow the city manager to live outside city limits, but only on the road system of Revillagigedo Island, where the city is located.

Proposition No. 4 would remove the requirement that voters approve the sale of any city property worth more than $30,000. Instead, the city council would have the authority to approve those sales.

The fifth proposition would allow the city to award large contracts to someone other than the lowest bidder, and the sixth would allow the city to approve sales or contracts with city employees and elected officials as long as there are at least three cost quotes and the chosen contract is “the most advantageous to the city.”

The last proposition, the seventh, would allow the city’s annual fiscal audit to take more than four months.

In addition to those ballot measures, three candidates are running for two seats on the Ketchikan City Council. There’s also a two-way race for borough mayor, two contested borough assembly races and two contested school board races.

Voters in Sitka will consider two ballot measures. The first would allow the city to use proceeds from the local tobacco tax and the sale of the local hospital for parks and recreation.

The second, if adopted, would require all ballot measures to include a comprehensive economic impact study report before reaching the signature-gathering phase.

Six people are running for two seats on the Borough Assembly in Sitka, and there are three candidates for two seats on the local school board.

In Petersburg, two candidates are running for mayor and five candidates are running for two seats on the borough assembly. There is one candidate and two open seats for the school board.

In Skagway, the one candidate for mayor is running uncontested, after the previous mayor resigned earlier this year. There are four candidates for two assembly seats, and one candidate for two open school board seats. In Haines, there are four candidates for two assembly seats, and two candidates for two school board seats.

North Slope voters contemplate big borrowing planIn the North Slope Borough, two of four assembly races are contested, and only one of four school board races is contested. Borough voters also will consider eight different bond proposals. That’s more ballot propositions than any other municipal election taking place this month in Alaska.

The borough is proposing to borrow a combined $204 million for public facilities, including light, power, water, sewage, public safety, education and flood control.

At Utqiagvik, the borough’s largest town and the northernmost town in the United States, voters will choose between two candidates for mayor. There’s also two city council races, only one of which is contested.

Voters also are being asked to choose whether or not to extend Utqiagvik’s 20% wholesale tobacco tax to cover “alternative nicotine products and equipment,” such as vape and e-cigarette products.

Within the Northwest Arctic Borough, there are four borough assembly seats on this year’s ballot. Only one race is contested, and one seat — covering Ambler, Kobuk and Shungnak — has no candidates at all.

Similarly, among three races for school board, none are contested and one of the three seats has no candidates.

In the Kotzebue city election, two seats on the city council are on the ballot, and each race has two candidates. Another seat was vacated by the resignation of Ruth Moto in September, and someone will be appointed to fill that seat after the election, with the replacement being up for election in October 2026.

The Nome Nugget noted “meager interest to run for public office” in Nome this year, with two city council seats and two school board seats unopposed, but voters there will also be asked whether to raise the city’s sales tax from 5% to 6%.

This week, the Nugget reported that if the tax increase doesn’t pass, city officials will cut services.

In the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Houston considers sales tax hikeThe Matanuska-Susitna Borough holds its elections in November (as does Metlakatla in Southeast), but the cities within the Mat-Su borough vote in October.

Wasilla has no ballot measures; its city election includes three city council races, only one of which is contested.

In Palmer, five people are competing to become the city mayor, the most competitive single municipal race this fall. Three people are competing for two three-year seats on the city council. There also is a one-year seat on the council, and two people are vying for it.

Palmer voters are also being asked if they want to change the city charter so the city manager is no longer required to live within the city. The change would allow the manager to live within five miles of city limits.

Within Houston, six people are running for three spots on the city council. Houston also has four ballot measures. One asks whether voters support a city-owned airport. A second asks voters to approve a 2% sales tax increase (from 2% to 4%) in order to pay for road repairs. The third and fourth measures ask voters to approve the “Matanuska Thunder Festival” and “Founder’s Day” as city holidays.

Many ballot measures in the Kenai Peninsula BoroughWithin the Kenai Peninsula Borough, voters will decide five different ballot propositions. The first would require elections officials to hand-count ballots and ban electronic tabulators. The Matanuska-Susitna Borough has already taken a similar move.

Proposition No. 2 would create a special taxing district in Ninilchik to fund a new local swimming pool there. No. 3, if approved, would increase the property tax exemption in the borough so the first $75,000 of a homeowner’s residence would be exempted from local property taxes. The current exemption applies to the first $50,000.

The fourth proposition would raise the borough’s sales tax cap every five years. Currently, sales taxes only apply to the first $500 of a purchase.

Proposition No. 5 would shift borough elections to November, aligning them with state and federal elections, much as the Mat-Su borough has done.

Five seats on the Kenai borough assembly are up for election, and three of the races are contested. Three school board seats are on the ballot as well, with two races contested.

Among city elections on the Kenai Peninsula, only Soldotna has a ballot measure. That proposition asks voters to approve or reject the annexation of 2.63 square miles of nearby land into the city limits.

In the Interior, none of Fairbanks’ three local governments have ballot measures this year, but this year’s ballot will decide three seats on the borough assembly and two on the borough school board. There’s a two-person race to become Mayor of Fairbanks, and two seats on the city council are up for election.

Southeast of Fairbanks, in North Pole, four seats on the city council are up for election. There are only four candidates, but the order of the candidates will determine who gets a three-year term, a two-year term or a one-year term.

Kodiak will pick a new mayorIn Kodiak, voters will pick between two candidates for borough mayor, five candidates for two seats on the borough assembly, and they will vote on a variety of service area boards.

Within city limits on Kodiak, four people are running to replace longtime Mayor Pat Branson, and four candidates are running for two seats on the city council.

In southwest Alaska, Bethel has four open city council seats but only three registered candidates and one write-in candidate.

In Unalaska, Mayor Vince Tutiakoff Sr. is running unopposed for re-election, and three people are running for one of the two city council seats on the ballot. The other incumbent for city council is unopposed. On the local school board, three people are running for one of two school board seats; the other seat is held by the incumbent school board president, who is unopposed in his re-election bid.

Within the Aleutians East Borough, which includes Sand Point, King Cove and Cold Bay, two of three borough assembly seats have unopposed races, and the third has two candidates. All three school board seats on the ballot have candidates running unopposed.

Further north in Dillingham, two city council seats have two candidates apiece, and three people are running unopposed for three school board seats.

Within the Bristol Bay Borough, based in Naknek, three people are running for two seats on the borough assembly, and there are five candidates for the two school board seats on the ballot.

In the Lake and Peninsula Borough, two borough assembly members and two school board members are running unopposed. Those elections, like those in Juneau, are conducted by mail, and ballots must be postmarked by Oct. 7 and received by the borough clerk before Nov. 7.