JKT Kreiss-Tomkins wins Alaska governorship, ending 24 years of GOP rule
The 37-year-old Democrat defeated three Republican opponents, including a Trump-backed candidate, in a ranked-choice vote.
By Abigail Brooks ·
Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, a 37-year-old former state representative from Sitka, won the election for Alaska governor on Saturday. The Associated Press called the race for the Democrat after a vote count that extended for over a week, including ballots from remote areas of the state.
Kreiss-Tomkins, who is widely known by his initials JKT, will replace term-limited Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who has held the office since 2018. This victory marks the first time a Democrat has won the governorship in Alaska since Tony Knowles left office in 2002.
The winner campaigned on a platform he described as a high-energy, bipartisan, problem-solving approach. He stated his intention to build an administration composed of Democrats, Republicans, and independents, and called himself a man of the middle during a debate. Kreiss-Tomkins received endorsements from three former governors, representing Democratic, Republican, and independent parties, as well as from Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski.
In an interview conducted at an Anchorage precinct just before voting on Election Day, Kreiss-Tomkins said Alaskans are tired of zero-sum partisan politics. He added, 'I strongly believe people just want things to work, and want people to work together.'
The election utilized Alaska's ranked-choice voting system, which requires a candidate to secure a majority of votes to win. Kreiss-Tomkins defeated three Republican opponents: business owner Bernadette Wilson, who was backed by President Trump; former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson; and former Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor. Voters also rejected a ballot measure to scrap the ranked-choice system, keeping the current voting method in place.
With this win, Democrats will control 30 governorships nationwide, an increase from the 24 they currently hold. Kreiss-Tomkins is set to take office at noon on Dec. 7.
The incoming governor faces a state with pressing financial and logistical challenges. Rising costs and flat state funding have forced school closures and larger class sizes. Prices for food, fuel, and housing have increased sharply, and a potential shortage of accessible natural gas near population centers threatens to push costs higher. Alaskans have been migrating out of the state for more than a decade.
