The 2026 Alaska gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 2026, to elect the next governor and lieutenant governor of Alaska. A nonpartisan top-four primary election occurred on August 18, 2026, in which four candidates advanced to a ranked-choice general election, held using instant-runoff voting. Incumbent governor Mike Dunleavy is term-limited and ineligible to seek a third consecutive term.
Democratic former state representative Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins won the election with an outright majority in the first-choice vote, becoming the first Democrat to be elected governor of Alaska since Tony Knowles in 1998. Kreiss-Tomkins is only the third Governor of Alaska to be born in the state (after William A. Egan and Bill Walker), and the first to be born in the state after it achieved statehood.
Candidates
Republican Party
Advanced to general
- Dave Bronson, former mayor of Anchorage (2021–2024)
- Running mate: Josh Church, financial professional
- Bernadette Wilson, waste management company founder and conservative activist
- Running mate: Mike Shower, former minority leader of the Alaska Senate (2025) from district O (2018–2025)
- Treg Taylor, former Alaska Attorney General (2021–2025)
- Running mate: Candice English, oil and gas support business owner
Eliminated in primary
- Click Bishop, former state senator from district R (2013–2025)
- Running mate: Greta Schuerch, member of the NANA Regional Corporation board of directors (Independent)
- Adam Crum, former commissioner of the Alaska Department of Revenue
- Running mate: Robert Craig, former healthcare executive
- Edna DeVries, mayor of Matanuska-Susitna Borough (2021–present)
- Running mate: George Hightower, retired physician
- Michael Loren Gilbert
- Running mate: Timothy Hickel
- Matt Heilala, member of the Alaska State Medical Board (2021–present)
- Running mate: Jesse Sumner, former state representative from the 28th district (2023–2025)
- Shelley Hughes, former majority leader of the Alaska Senate (2021–2023) from district M (2017–2025)
- Running mate: Blake Gettys, retired U.S. Air Force brigadier general
- Henry R. "Hank" Kroll, author
- Running mate: Tommy R. Nicholson III (Independent)
- Lesil McGuire, former state senator from district K (2007–2017) (endorsed Kreiss-Tomkins)
- Running mate: Elizabeth Rexford, legislative staffer
- James W. "JP4" Parkin, lab technician and retired educator
- Running mate: Ramadhani "Ram" Greer, general contractor (Democratic)
Withdrawn
- Nancy Dahlstrom, Lieutenant Governor of Alaska (2022–present) and candidate for Alaska's at-large congressional district in 2024
Declined
- Lisa Murkowski, U.S. Senator (2002–present) and daughter of former governor Frank Murkowski
Fundraising
Italics indicate a withdrawn or disqualified candidate
Democratic Party
Advanced to general
- Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, former state representative from the 35th district (2013–2023)
- Running mate: Zac Johnson, Anchorage assemblymember for the 6th district (Independent)
Withdrew after advancing to general
- Tom Begich, former Minority Leader of the Alaska Senate (2019–2023) from district J (2017–2023) and uncle of U.S. Representative Nick Begich III (endorsed Kreiss-Tomkins)
- Running mate: Julia Hnilicka, former Alaska state director for USDA Rural Development and nominee for Alaska's 6th house district in 2020
Withdrawn
- Matt Claman, state senator from district H (2023–present) (endorsed Kreiss-Tomkins)
- Running mate: Sarah Skeel, former chief administrative officer of Providence Alaska Medical Center
Declined
- Mary Peltola, former U.S. Representative from Alaska's at-large congressional district (2022–2025) (running for U.S. Senate)
Independents
Eliminated in primary
- Meda DeWitt, community organizer and traditional healer
- Running mate: Christopher Steere, Dewitt's campaign manager
- Destry J. Payne Sr., welder-fabricator
- Running mate: Cliff Silvers, mechanic
- Bill Walker, former governor of Alaska (2014–2018) and candidate for governor in 2010 and 2022
- Running mate: Randy Hoffbeck, former commissioner of the Alaska Department of Revenue
Primary election
Campaign
The primary featured a crowded field of 17 candidates. Candidates at times struggled to distinguish themselves, while Alaska's nonpartisan primary and ranked-choice voting system were credited with encouraging more positive campaigning. As a result, candidates often emphasized areas of agreement, particularly with members of their own party.
Republican Bernadette Wilson called on Republican candidates to withdraw if they advanced to the general election but received fewer votes than another Republican, though she was the only candidate to pledge to do so herself. Democrats Tom Begich and Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins similarly discussed the possibility of one withdrawing after the primary to consolidate Democratic support behind the other.
The race also saw heavy spending. Republicans Treg Taylor and Matt Heilala, the party's two highest-spending candidates, largely self-funded their campaigns. Heilala contributed $1.4 million to his campaign, while Taylor contributed $600,000. Taylor's contribution violated an Alaska campaign finance deadline, though he argued that the restriction was unconstitutional.
Kreiss-Tomkins spent more than any other candidate and reported the largest number of individual Alaskan contributors, although most of his funding came from outside the state, including employees of Anthropic and others connected to the artificial intelligence industry. Begich raised approximately $1.2 million, more than half of which came from two wealthy Alaskan donors.
Endorsements
Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (D)
- Tony Knowles, former governor of Alaska (1994–2002)
- Forrest Dunbar, state senator from district J (2023–present)
- Jennie Armstrong, former state representative from the 13th district (2023–2025)
- Matt Claman, state senator from district H (2023–present) and withdrawn candidate in this election
- Robyn Frier, state representative from the 40th district (2025–present)
- Zack Fields, state representative from the 20th district (2019–2023) and 17th district (2023–present)
- Rebecca Himschoot, state representative from the 2nd district (2023–present)
- Dan Ortiz, former state representative from the 36th district (2015–2023) and 1st district (2023–2025) (Independent)
- Calvin Schrage, state representative from the 25th district (2021–2023) and the 12th district (2023–Present) (Independent)
- Mike Navarre, former mayor of Kenai Peninsula Borough (1996–1999; 2011–2017) and former state representative from the 5A district and 9th district (1985–1996)
- National Education Association-Alaska (co-endorsement with Begich and Bishop)
General election
Campaign
After initially finishing second in the primary, Begich withdrew and endorsed Kreiss-Tomkins, allowing fifth-place finisher Taylor to advance to the general election. However, the Alaska Public Offices Commission recommended against certifying Taylor's candidacy after finding that his financial disclosure did not substantially comply with state law. On August 31, Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom declined to certify Taylor, temporarily elevating his running mate, Candice English, to the gubernatorial nomination; English subsequently selected Taylor's wife, Jodi Taylor, as her running mate. On September 4, Dahlstrom reversed her decision and announced that Taylor would be certified after a preliminary review by the Alaska Department of Law raised questions about whether the financial disclosure requirements had been applied consistently.
In the general election campaign, Taylor softened his messaging and attempted to appeal to independent and Democratic voters. Kreiss-Tomkins pledged that Democrats, Republicans, and independents would be equally represented in his cabinet and emphasized endorsements from moderate Republicans. In contrast, Wilson criticized bipartisanship and said that bipartisan coalitions in the Alaska legislature had been ineffective.
Taylor and Bronson called upon Republican voters to rank all three Republicans in the race, while Wilson urged her supporters not to rank other candidates and renewed her calls for the other Republicans to drop out.
While the three Republican candidates generally agreed on most issues, including opposition to new taxation proposals from Kreiss-Tomkins, Wilson was alone in advocating for a return to paying out full Permanent Fund dividends according to the statutory formula. Incumbent governor Mike Dunleavy had made a similar promise during his 2018 campaign, but his efforts to implement the proposal had been unsuccessful. In fact, dividends reached a record low during Dunleavy's administration. The other candidates argued that following the statutory formula would be unaffordable for the foreseeable future.
The candidates also diverged on the issue of data centers. Bronson and Taylor were generally supportive of data centers, portraying them as an economic opportunity provided they generated their own electricity and did not drive up energy costs. Despite receiving large campaign contributions from donors connected to the artificial intelligence industry, Kreiss-Tomkins advocated for a moratorium on data center construction until a regulatory framework could be developed. He also supported regulation of artificial intelligence more broadly. Wilson also opposed data centers, highlighting their environmental impact and arguing that Kreiss-Tomkins could not be trusted on the issue.
Post-primary endorsements
Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (D)
- Lisa Murkowski, Alaska (2002–present) (Republican)
- Frank Murkowski, former governor of Alaska (2002–2006) and former U.S. senator (1981–2002) (Republican)
- Bill Walker, former governor of Alaska (2014–2018) and primary candidate in this election (Independent)
- Jim Duncan, former state representative (1975-1986), Speaker of the House (1981–1982), and state senator (1987–1998)
- Lesil McGuire, former state senator from district K (2007–2017) and former gubernatorial candidate (Republican)
- Rick Halford, former senate president (1993–1994, 2001–2003), state senator (1983–2003), and state representative (1978–1983) (Republican)
- Tom Begich, former senate minority leader (2019–2023) from district J (2017–2023) and former gubernatorial candidate
- Julia Hnilicka, former Alaska state director for USDA Rural Development and former lieutenant gubernatorial candidate (Begich's running mate)
- Alaska AFL-CIO
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1547
- International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 5, Alaska Local 1959
- Plumbers & Steamfitters UA Local 367
- Alaska Professional Firefighters Association
- Public Safety Employees Association Local 803
- Teamsters Local 959
- United Auto Workers Region 6 PAC/Alaska Graduate Workers Association
- Western States Carpenters Union
- Democrats for Education Reform
- Democratic Governors Association
- Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates Alaska
- Sealaska Corporation