State legislators who aren’t running for re-election have created openings drawing big spending ahead of the primary election next Tuesday. A quarter of all spending by legislative candidates has been in just three races for open seats. But it’s not clear whether those who’ve spent the most will be able to convert that into votes.
The races to replace Anchorage Republican Lesil McGuire and Democrat Johnny Ellis in the Senate have drawn the most spending this year.
Republicans Natasha Von Imhof, Representative Craig Johnson and Jeff Landfield are running to replace McGuire. Von Imhof has spent more than any other candidate this year, $131,000.
Von Imhof said she’s been able to draw financial support from many individual donors. She attributes that to both her positions on putting state spending on a sustainable footing and the contact she’s had with many Alaskans through her work on the Rasmuson Foundation board and through commercial lending.
“I’ve visited many of the industries that fuel our state’s economy, including visiting mines,” Von Imhoff said. “I’ve been on oil rigs; I have been on cruise ships, fishing vessels; I’ve seen the timber industry at work.”
Through Tuesday, her campaign spent twice as much as Johnson and Landfield combined.
While Johnson says spending is always a concern, he feels good, based on face-to-face contact with constituents.
“As I go door to door, I haven’t seen the negatives, and quite frankly, I haven’t seen $130,000 worth of spending out of Natasha,” Johnson said. “I mean, we’ve got a week left, and I don’t know where she spent her money.”
Johnson added that there will still be plenty of spending in the next week, so the snapshot of spending through yesterday is incomplete.
Landfield said he’s spending his money more efficiently than the other two candidates.
“I have my Make Alaska Great Again hats, which are kind of a Trump parody gimmick – and people love those,” Landfield said. “And I got these really unique signs up in Anchorage that are really different. I mean everything about my campaign is different. So I can spend a dollar and, for Craig or Natasha – especially Natasha – they have to spend probably five.”
The second most-expensive race is between Democrats Tom Begich and Ed Wesley, to replace Sen. Johnny Ellis.
Begich said his many years of community involvement led to individuals contributing to his campaign.
“Many of those are folks that have not given at all in the past and have worked with me, whether it’s neighborhood work, or whether it’s some justice work I’ve done, or just general work I’ve done in communities in the past,” Begich said.
Wesley is concerned about the amount of spending in the primary. He’s spent the seventh-most of any statehouse candidate, but only a little more than half of his opponent. He says he’s turned down money from labor unions and other groups.
“Special interest money has created fear and greed in the legislature, and has an undue influence on our legislature,” Wesley said.
The Republican primary race to replace Anchorage Representative Mike Hawker is the fourth most expensive race. That race pits Ross Bieling against Jennifer Johnston.
Other expensive primary races have major implications for the future of state finances. The third-most expensive race is the Republican primary between Representative Jim Colver and challenger George Rauscher, both of Palmer.
The Colver-Rauscher race has been at the center of more than a third of all independent expenditures in favor or opposing candidates this year. It’s fueled by labor unions and corporations. When independent expenditures are added to campaign spending, the challenger Rauscher has benefitted more than the incumbent Colver.
Overall campaign spending on legislative races is up slightly from the same point in the last election, when the race for governor was at the top of the ballot.
Andrew Kitchenman is the state government and politics reporter for Alaska Public Media and KTOO in Juneau. Reach him at akitchenman@alaskapublic.org.
