Lieutenant Governor of Alaska

The lieutenant governor of Alaska (Iñupiaq: Alaskam Kavanaata Ikayuqtiksrautaa) is the deputy elected official to the governor of the U.S. state of Alaska. Unlike most lieutenant governors in the U.S., the office also maintains the duties of a secretary of state, and indeed was named such until August 25, 1970.^[1] Prior to statehood, the territorial-era Secretary of Alaska, who was appointed by the president of the United States like the governor, functioned as an acting governor or successor-in-waiting. Currently, the lieutenant governor accedes to the governorship in case of a vacancy.^[2] The lieutenant governor runs together with the governor in both the primary and the general election as a slate.

Hallway of the third floor of the Alaska State Capitol in May 2019. Signage points the direction to the lieutenant governor's office.

Lieutenant governors of the State of Alaska

No.	Lieutenant Governor^[a]			Term in office	Party	Election	Governor^[b]
1			Hugh Wade (1901–1995)	January 3, 1959 – December 5, 1966 (lost election)	Democratic^[4]	1958		William A. Egan
						1962
2			Keith Harvey Miller (1925–2019)	December 5, 1966 – January 29, 1969 (succeeded to governor)	Republican^[5]	1966		Wally Hickel
3			Robert W. Ward (1929–1997)	January 29, 1969 – December 7, 1970 (lost election)	Republican	Succeeded from commissioner of administration		Keith Harvey Miller
4			H. A. Boucher (1921–2009)	December 7, 1970 – December 2, 1974 (lost election)	Democratic^[6]	1970		William A. Egan
5			Lowell Thomas Jr. (1923–2016)	December 2, 1974 – December 4, 1978 (did not run)	Republican^[7]	1974		Jay Hammond
6			Terry Miller (1942–1989)	December 4, 1978 – December 6, 1982 (did not run)^[c]	Republican^[8]	1978
7			Steve McAlpine (b. 1949)	December 6, 1982 – December 3, 1990 (did not run)^[d]	Democratic^[9]	1982		Bill Sheffield
						1986		Steve Cowper
8			Jack Coghill (1925–2019)	December 3, 1990 – December 5, 1994 (did not run)^[e]	Alaskan Independence^[10]	1990		Wally Hickel
9			Fran Ulmer (b. 1947)	December 5, 1994 – December 2, 2002 (did not run)^[f]	Democratic^[11]	1994		Tony Knowles
						1998
10			Loren Leman (b. 1950)	December 2, 2002 – December 4, 2006 (did not run)	Republican^[12]	2002		Frank Murkowski
11			Sean Parnell (b. 1962)	December 4, 2006 – July 26, 2009 (succeeded to governor)	Republican^[13]	2006		Sarah Palin
—	Vacant			July 26, 2009 – August 10, 2009	Office vacated by succession to governor^[g]			Sean Parnell
12			Craig Campbell (b. 1952)	August 10, 2009 – December 6, 2010 (did not run)	Republican	Nominated by governor and confirmed by legislature
13			Mead Treadwell (b. 1956)	December 6, 2010 – December 1, 2014 (did not run)^[h]	Republican^[15]	2010
14			Byron Mallott (1943–2020)	December 1, 2014 – October 16, 2018 (resigned)^[i]	Independent^[17]	2014		Bill Walker
15			Valerie Davidson (b. 1967)	October 16, 2018 – December 3, 2018 (withdrew)^[j]	Independent	Appointed by governor
16			Kevin Meyer (b. 1956)	December 3, 2018 – December 5, 2022 (did not run)^[19]	Republican^[20]	2018		Mike Dunleavy
17			Nancy Dahlstrom (b. 1957)	December 5, 2022 – Incumbent^[k]	Republican^[21]	2022

Notes

1. The office of lieutenant governor was named secretary of state until 1970.^[3]
2. Lieutenant governors represented the same party as their governor unless noted.
3. Miller instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for governor.
4. McAlpine instead ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for governor.
5. Coghill instead ran unsuccessfully for governor.
6. Ulmer instead ran unsuccessfully for governor.
7. Parnell succeeded to the governorship upon Palin's resignation. Joe Schmidt, commissioner of the Department of Corrections and Palin's designated replacement for Parnell, refused the position. Campbell was appointed as "Temporary Substitute Lieutenant Governor" on July 26, 2009, and was confirmed by the Alaska Legislature on August 10, 2009.^[14]
8. Treadwell instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for the United States Senate.
9. Mallott resigned, citing inappropriate comments he had made to a woman; Davidson, Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services, was appointed to succeed him.^[16]
10. Davidson withdrew from the election on October 19, 2018, after the deadline of September 4, and so remained on the ballot.^[18]
11. Dahlstrom's first term expires on December 7, 2026.

References

General

• Kallenbach, Joseph Ernest (1977). American State Governors, 1776-1976. Oceana Publications. ISBN 978-0-379-00665-0. Retrieved September 23, 2023.

Specific

1. AK Const. amendments
2. "The Constitution of the State of Alaska". Lieutenant Governor of Alaska. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
3. Kallenbach 1977, pp. 41–43.
4. "End of Campaign Trail Puts Choice Up to Alaska Voters". The Nome Nugget. AP. November 24, 1958. p. 10. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
5. Sims, Ward (November 7, 1966). "68,000 Alaskans to Decide Tight Governor's Race". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. AP. p. 1. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
6. "Big Turnout at Polls Here". Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. November 3, 1970. p. 1. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
7. Greeley, John (November 6, 1974). "Egan, Hammond Race for Governor Seesaws As Votes Trickle In". Daily Sitka Sentinel. AP. p. 1. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
8. "Teamsters Get Behind Hickel Write-In Try". Daily Sitka Sentinel. AP. November 2, 1978. p. 5. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
9. Bartley, Bruce (October 4, 1982). "Gubernatorial Candidates Hold Pre-Debate Debates". Daily Sitka Sentinel. AP. p. 10. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
10. "Independence Party Wants Coghill's Seat". Daily Sitka Sentinel. AP. November 15, 1990. p. 1. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
11. Pagano, Rosanne (November 9, 1994). "Governor's Race Still Up in the Air". Daily Sitka Sentinel. AP. p. 1. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
12. "Leman leads GOP race for lt. governor - UPI Archives". UPI. August 28, 2002. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
13. Elmer, Patti (November 3, 2010). "Parnell will keep his job as Alaska governor". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
14. Forgey, Pat (August 11, 2009). . Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
15. Demer, Lisa (October 16, 2010). "Treadwell spent big during primary to get name recognition". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
16. DeMarban, Alex (October 17, 2018). "Valerie Davidson, Alaska's new lieutenant governor, has a long history fighting for Native issues". Anchorage Daily News. Anchorage, Alaska. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
17. "Primary Election Breakdowns for Alaska, Wyoming". Arizona Daily Star. AP. August 20, 2014. pp. A16. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
18. Hsieh, Jeremy; KTOO, Andrew Kitchenman and David Purdy (October 19, 2018). "Updated: Gov. Walker suspends re-election campaign and backs Begich". KTOO. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
19. Brooks, James (December 28, 2021). "Alaska Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer will not run for reelection in 2022". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved December 5, 2023.
20. Kitchenman, Andrew (November 6, 2018). "Meyer, Call bring different backgrounds as lieutenant governor candidates". KTOO. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
21. George, Kavitha (December 13, 2022). "Nancy Dahlstrom has spent most of her 20-year political career out of the spotlight. Now she's second in command". Alaska Public Media. Retrieved December 6, 2023.

External links

• Office of the Lieutenant Governor of Alaska