Alaska voters have chosen a Democrat for governor for the first time since 1998, adding to a nationwide midterm surge that delivered the party major gains in state governments.
Former state lawmaker Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins defeated three Republican candidates, including business owner Bernadette Wilson, who had been endorsed by President Trump.
His win gives Democrats control of the governor’s office in 30 states, including Iowa, Georgia, Ohio and Texas—states where the party recently broke through after years of Republican rule.
Kreiss-Tomkins, widely known as JKT, marked a political comeback three years after leaving the Alaska House of Representatives.
During the campaign, he traveled extensively across the state to assemble a broad coalition. He centered his platform on affordability, full funding for public schools and requiring all oil and gas producers to pay corporate income tax.
He also called for a pause on new data center projects until lawmakers establish regulations governing their development.
Kreiss-Tomkins argued that Alaska had become “broken” during the eight years of outgoing Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s administration and said the state was ready for a new direction. Among the issues he highlighted was the deteriorating ferry system, which has seen routes to many communities sharply reduced.
The ferry network remains essential to communities in southeast Alaska that lack road connections and, in some cases, have limited air service as well.
At 37, Kreiss-Tomkins stressed that he would work across party lines. He said his Cabinet would include Republicans, Democrats and independents.
“If they’re competent, if they’re service-minded, if they’re entrepreneurial, if they’re problem-solvers, you’re on the team. Game on,” he said at a candidate forum last month. “Let’s go, and let’s get Alaska back on track.”
Republican US Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who has occasionally broken with her party and with Trump, endorsed Kreiss-Tomkins one week before Election Day.
She said he “understands that governing requires listening to people with different perspectives and finding common ground to solve the problems all of us face.”
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Three former governors—Democrat Tony Knowles, independent Bill Walker and Republican Frank Murkowski, the senator’s father—also backed him.
In a victory statement released Friday, Kreiss-Tomkins said voters were demanding change and “a government that works across party lines to move Alaska forward.” He added that his administration “will not waste a single day getting to work to solve problems for Alaska” and said the campaign attracted more than 10,000 donors.
His campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment after The Associated Press called the race.
Kreiss-Tomkins defeated Republicans Wilson, Dave Bronson and Treg Taylor. Trump endorsed Wilson, a business owner, while criticizing the other Republican contenders for remaining in the race.
Bronson previously served as mayor of Anchorage, Alaska’s largest city. Taylor was Dunleavy’s state attorney general.
Bronson congratulated Kreiss-Tomkins on social media and wished him well. Wilson’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Many Republicans considered Wilson their party’s strongest chance to hold the governor’s office. That assessment clashed with Trump’s repeated criticism of Alaska’s unusual voting system, including remarks he made at an October rally in the state.
Kreiss-Tomkins led the field in August’s open primary, followed by fellow Democrat Tom Begich, who later dropped out. Begich’s campaign said at the time that it had determined “the strongest path to victory is to bring Democratic voters, donors and resources together behind one candidate.” Wilson placed third in the primary.
Kreiss-Tomkins said compromise “is a virtue, not a dirty word” and described the incoming governor’s central task as working with lawmakers to address Alaska’s long-running challenges.
The state’s last Democratic governor, Tony Knowles, left office in 2002 after serving two consecutive terms. Walker was governor from 2014 to 2018.
Kreiss-Tomkins will take office on Dec. 7. His lieutenant governor will be Zac Johnson, an independent.
