Les Gara, former Democratic Party House representative for downtown Anchorage, has filed a letter of intent to run for governor.
Gara served in the House from 2003 to 2019, and although his District number changed during redistricting, when he left office it was — and still is — District 20, where Rep. Zack Fields now serves as representative.
Gara has told many people that he planned to run for governor. He is discontented with the funding for foster care in the state, and is a well-known opponent of oil companies; Gara has advocated for more taxation on oil leases.
Gara is part owner of Snow City Cafe, along with former Mayor Ethan Berkowitz. He is considered to be very plugged into the Alaska Democratic Party apparatus.
Gara will complicate things for the Alaska Democratic Party, which already has its previous nominee in the race — former Gov. Bill Walker. Walker and his former Labor commissioner Heidi Drygas filed for governor and lieutenant governor earlier this week.
Also having filed for governor this week is Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican.
With an open primary, there is just one ballot for the primary, with all names on it. The top four proceed to the general election, regardless of party.
The primary election will be held on Aug. 16, 2022.
First Walker, now Gara.
I prefer Dunleavy.
Those two umdoubtedly will not respect people’s choices to recieve the covid jabs on their own timetable.
At least Governor Dunleavy has been thoughtful and shown an astute political mind deciding how to best resolve the tasks and crisis facing Alaskans, respecting Alaskans independence or stubbornness not to be bossed around. Although he recommends people receive the covid shots, he respects not everyone is ready to recieve the jabs, yet.
After yesterday I met my first Anchorage resident who is living with someone who is now living with a negative side effect from the Covid jabs. Seriously! I definitely want to wait, after seeing the faces of a family living with a member who is living with a major side effect from the covid jabs.
It is surely a sign of the End Times!
Nah, just a sign of ranked-choice ballot measure’s idiocy. God help us please.
For the love of God. Not another Democrat much less a Democrat governor. That would be the final nail in the destruction of this amazing state.
Why would Alaskans vote for someone that is an opponent of the largest financial institution for state funds the Oil Companies.
He went to Harvard.
Enough said. Sadly that now explains too much! Did not start out that way…..?.
In this new rank system he needs to talk someone into being his running mate, as Walker did. I imagine Gara is looking for a transgender union boss who channels king salmon, and who has received at least one national award from the Sierra Club. Minority racial DNA, or at least the claim of having some is essential. That probably limits his search to about 200 Democrats in Fairbanks, all tied to the University in some way, another 500 in Anchorage, 30 in Juneau, etc. It would be good if the running mate was a remittance person from a wealthy hedge fund or industrial titan family, and many Alaska transgender environmentalists who hang around the University are exactly that. He will no sooner choose his running mate and Walker will call him to talk him into merging their two tickets, telling Gara that he will step aside after two years as Governor making then Lt. Gov. Gara the Governor. I could change my mind but today I would bet that Gara is too smart for that, and he certainly isn’t running just to get laid in more places and more age groups so Walker’s pleadings will be frustrated.
Run off the oil companies and spend more on social programs. That’s quite a platform. Well, the people who brought us open primaries know how to manipulate them.
Has Les done more for the state’s foster care funding with personal donations, or with charity drives hosted at Snow City Cafe? I haven’t read about them if he has. As I recall from his days in office, he was always looking to do more with other people’s money than he was with his own.
We don’t need more gara we need less gara…
Excellent. With any amount of luck, he and the other idiot will split the idiot ticket and we’ll come out of the election unscathed, however; with this other idiotic idea called “rank choice voting” coupled with mail-in ballots, who knows…… Winnie the Pooh might win.
I would vote for Winnie over Gara or Walker!
God help us if Comrade Gara wins.
Yep, just what Anchorage and Alaska need — another far-left, divorced-from-reality lunatic in office.
Because God knows we don’t have enough of them already.
Could you just imagine what Alaska would look like under his governorship. Talk about a state commiting mass suicide…
Good, get as many Democrats running as possible. Make them debate, perhaps even tell the truth on their positions. News of the North in Juneau reported he was running to create more jobs. Hmm, this will need further explanation when Democrats shut down pipelines, oil exploration and leases, shut down tourism and businesses, anger our neighboring country so they shut down their border. Lots of things to explain, better start now.
Stupid strong here.
And by “here” you obviously mean yourself.
Sure is Billy and you always dive headlong with your erudite comments.
You obviously didn’t read Jimbo’s diatribe-if you had you couldn’t possibly be defending it. Unless you are a fool, also.
“Good, get as many Democrats running as possible………..”
Twenty Demonrats running increases the odds that there will be more of them at the top under the new ranked ballot game. Watch the pea closely before it goes under one of the shells. Alaskans are so freaking stupid, it might take ten election cycles before they realize that this ranked ballot system was yet another scheme to enslave them.
How did they reanimate Lenin?
Gara must be asked…”what did he know…and when did he know it…. about his business partner Berkowitz fleeing Anchorage and running from accusations to horrible to write about!
Just “wow”. Dominion voting systems must be alive and well in Alaska.
I favor a fraction of what government’s size is right now so this gentleman is not the one. I did not like how he blocked ALL reasonable, businesslike suggestions and efforts to trim our behemoth state budget. So very unwise.
Here’s another opportunist who is going to try to play Alaska’s new election system like a casino table game.
Gara is a Walker plant. Designed to boost Walker’s chances per Rank Choice Votes. Then, Walker rewards Gara with a Commissioner’s position.
Too obvious!
If you add the corruption in Alaskan politics to the ignorance of low information Alaskan voters, then throw in the apathy of huge numbers of potential voters…all abetted by Alaska’s corrupt judicial system…I predict Alaska’s down drain spiral will accelerate regardless of who is elected.
Alaska has elected large numbers of “Republicans” to state government, and what do we have to show for it? Liberal pipe dreams and a state that is rotting from the inside out. You know…kinda like America. It would be truly laughable if it wasn’t so disgusting.
He’s been known as “Greasy Les” Gara. A true lefty if there ever was one.
Walker and Gara.. ranked number 738,455 and 738,456, respectively, on a 4 candidate ballot..
Omg ….. Not another attorney. Much less another one with questionable morals. Mention our last former mayor in the same breath and the red flags are waving wildly!
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