Republican gubernatorial candidate Click Bishop announced his running mate at a campaign event in Fairbanks on Wednesday night.
The former state senator and labor commissioner has chosen Greta Schuerch, a board member for the NANA Regional Corporation who’s from the Northwest Alaska village of Kiana.
Standing before a crowd at the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center, Bishop said that at 68, he’s approaching the twilight of his long political career. But he said Schuerch, 46, is just getting started.
“This young lady’s taking a chance on me,” Bishop said. “My ticket is punched, but I care so much about Alaska. And I’m going to do everything I can to win — that we can win — so that she can build her future for Alaska going forward.”
Schuerch works in government affairs for Teck, the Canadian mining company that runs the Red Dog Mine. She said the decision to run for lieutenant governor was a difficult one.
“Alaska’s at a critical moment,” she said. “We’re facing real challenges around energy, the cost of living, and the state’s budget deficit that impacts our schools, our communities, and our families. Instead of coming together to meet those challenges, we’re seeing division grow.”
Schuerch said there was a time when Alaska politicians didn’t let the letter beside their name determine “who they were, or who they were willing to work with.” She said that she and Bishop aim to bring that cooperative spirit to the governor’s office. Schuerch ran for state House as a Democrat in 2012. According to her campaign office, she is now registered as unaffiliated.
Eighteen other Alaskans have announced their candidacy for this year’s gubernatorial race. Bishop is the third to announce his running mate. Candidates have until June 1 to get their names on the ballot for the August primary.
In Alaska, all candidates run together on a single ballot for the primary election. The top four finishers then move on to the general election.
