Governor’s State of State Address to highlight five Alaskans, and ask lawmakers to set aside differences for greater good

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Gov. Mike Dunleavy will deliver his fourth State of the State Address on Tuesday at 7 pm, to the combined House and Senate, and to the people of Alaska. It can be watched online at this link and on the governor’s Facebook page.

The address will be in person once again, rather than given remotely, as it was in 2021, when the Legislature was grappling with Covid.

His address will highlight the state’s accomplishments on budget discipline, crime, and steering Alaska through a tumultuous period that included the 2018 earthquake, the 2019 wildfire season, and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

He will share with Alaskans his goals for the legislative session, including resolving the PFD and a fiscal plan, among others. He will stress the importance of remaining optimistic and call on everyone to set aside their differences to focus on achieving outcomes that benefit all Alaskans. His goal is to deliver a positive vision for the future with initiatives focused on long-term solutions that realize state motto of “North to Alaska.”

In his address, Dunleavy has chosen five Alaskans to highlight for their endurance, resilience, and achievements:

“Each of our five guests is an exemplary Alaskan,” said Governor Dunleavy. “My fellow Alaskans constantly impress me with their determination and diversity – through nationwide competition, overcoming addiction, helping out their neighbors, and displaying resilience in their field. These five guests symbolize the spirit of Alaska and I am honored to have them attend the State of the State this year.”

Emma Broyles broke ground as the first Miss Alaska to win the title of Miss America in the 100-year history of the competition. She used her platform during the competition to openly discuss her experience with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in hopes that viewers could relate to her experience.

Carley Rose Kelley is a survivor who is breaking addiction cycles. Today, at age 27, she is three years sober, after surviving domestic violence and drug addiction. She is a client navigator and peer support specialist for at-risk and homeless youth at My House in Wasilla. She is also one of Governor Dunleavy’s People First Initiative advocates. The People First Initiative addresses several public safety issues facing Alaska today, including domestic violence, sexual assault, missing and murdered Indigenous persons, human and sex trafficking, foster care, and homelessness.

Captain Andrew Viray is a lifelong Alaskan who was commissioned into the Army National Guard as an infantry officer after graduating and is serving as a plans and projects officer until he takes command of an Infantry Rifle Company in the coming months. Capt. Viray has been a leader in our COVID response since we first stood up our Joint Task Force in March 2020. He has also served as a staff planner in the Joint Task Force emergency responses in Fairbanks, the Mat-Su, and Yakutat.

Sergeant Ken Noland, Staff Sgt. of Operations, is one of the most senior Corrections officers. Sgt. Noland is a diligent and generous officer who has mentored and trained his peers in those values for more than 25 years.

Sergeant Elondre Johnson is an 18-year veteran of the Alaska State Troopers, assigned to the Bethel Post. In recognition of his outstanding service and his model example to fellow Troopers, Sgt. Johnson was named the 2020 Alaska State Trooper of the Year.

The State of the State Address fulfills a section of the Alaska Constitution that requires the governor to provide the Legislature with an annual update: “The governor shall, at the beginning of each session, and may at other times, give the legislature information concerning the affairs of the State and recommend the measures he considers necessary.”

6 COMMENTS

  1. Where might a bound copy of the home rule charter be obtained in Alaska for the municipality of Anchorage? If the largest city in the largest state does not make a printed complete copy of the charter is nowhere available to the requesting public the stats of half the state of Alaska has run amok. Also, di not say it is available online. That is a false statement.

  2. “Putting our differences aside” gave us the left-wing house coalition, Lisa Murkowski, Bill Walker, and the old “senate working group.” It’s time to highlight our differences and fight for our state

  3. No house succeeds when it is divided. After the elections those who survive the process must work together for the good of their society. There will always be points of contention where compromise is impossible, but where they can, legislators and governor must work together to get things done. For those who observed or listened to the state of the state speech, I remind them that Gov. Dunleavy called for food independence, reminding the legislators that more disasters are headed our way. He wants an Alaska that is truly independent and that can function on its own. That will take a lot of cooperation without necessarily giving up your core beliefs. But that will also take wisdom. Those of us who have lived on the Ring of Fire all of our lives know that when the two major faults, San Andreas and Cascadia finally correct themselves, the damage will be so massive as to be unimaginable. All relief efforts will be concentrated on the population centers in the lower 48 – Seattle, Portland, Tacoma, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego and their immediate areas. Alaska must be prepared to go it alone. It can do that if it prepares now. It cannot do that if it persists in divisive name calling and intolerance. All the Governor is really asking is for Alaskans to come together where they can for all of Alaska. Is that too much to ask?

  4. Yes, when “coming together” means more government involvement in the private sector, or when it means giving up essential freedoms for a little bit of temporary safety. If you give the Left an inch, they’ll take a mile, and soon we’ll all be living in the glorious communist utopia. “Come together” means “don’t whine about losing your basic human rights.”

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