A Haines candidate for Alaska House District 33 is asking the public not to vote for him.
It’s past the deadline to withdraw as a candidate in the primary election, but 28-year-old James Hart says he no longer wants to be considered.
Hart says a summer job in Sitka complicated campaigning in his district. However, Hart says the experience allowed him to get his foot in the door and understand areas he needs to work on for the future.
Hart says he still wants to be involved in politics in a different capacity, but he’s still figuring out what that looks like.
Hart is a Chilkoot Indian Association Tribal Council member. He’s also a delegate of the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes. Last year, he worked as a public policy fellow for Sitka Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins.
The state primary election is August 21. Early voting started yesterday.
Three other candidates remain in the democratic primary race: Sara Hannan and Steve Handy of Douglas and Tom Morphet from Haines.
House District 33 represents Skagway, Haines, Klukwan, Excursion Inlet, Gustavus, downtown Juneau and Douglas.
