This article was originally published in Seward’s Folly, the author’s personal Substack on June 25, 2026, under the title “Shelley Hughes’ Big Blunder.”
By Greg Sarber
In Alaska’s Governor election, Shelley Hughes was on the short list of candidates I was considering. However, she just made a blunder so enormous that I wonder if her candidacy can survive, and I am now taking a second look at other people in the race.
On most issues, former state Senator Hughes has been spot on. On one subject in particular, that of grand jury rights in Alaska, Hughes took a pitch-perfect position on the issue and made an excellent proactive plan to address the problems brought about by SCO1993. So, it is with great shock that I read her opinion piece yesterday, in which she explained her position on the statutory Permanent Fund Dividend.
Senator Hughes attempted to find the middle road on the challenging statutory PFD issue, but instead made a huge mistake. Although not mentioning any other candidate by name, Hughes said that she thought the candidate promising one last large PFD payout and ending dividends forever would not pass constitutional muster. It is clear that Hughes referred to former governor Bill Walker’s plan and disagrees with it, but she can afford to be critical of Walker, as his candidacy is not likely to go anywhere. Based on his performance the last time he ran for governor, where he only got 2% of the vote in the general election, it is unlikely that Walker will make it past this year’s primary, not even with his obvious attempted bribe of the voters.
On the other side of the issue, Hughes said that candidates calling for a full PFD are engaging in political theater and are not serious about paying a full PFD. Hughes again did not mention any names, but the only candidates pledging to pay a full PFD are Edna DeVries and Bernadette Wilson, so it was those candidates she was referring to, and Hughes is right to be worried. Both women are strong conservative candidates who are resonating with voters and are a threat to her in the primary.
Hughes argued that paying a full PFD is impossible, and those supporting the idea need to present their plan showing where the money comes from and what services will be cut. Claiming that if they cannot do so, their comments are just empty campaign rhetoric. Hughes also argued that because the legislature has not funded a full PFD for the past 10 years, it is not feasible to do so in the future. She says it is pointless to threaten a veto of the legislature’s budget without a full PFD, as they would just override the governor’s veto.
Wow. That is all I can say. Wow.
She must not realize that former Governor Jay Hammond warned us this day was coming. He said that greedy legislators would not be able to keep their hands off the Permanent Fund, and the only way to protect it was to pay a dividend to the voters to ensure they have ownership of it. On this issue, Hughes is tone deaf and sounds like she is channeling the former legislator that she once was.
If candidate Hughes wants an example of leadership on difficult legislation, she should look at the actions of our current president. The SAVE America Act is important to President Trump. He believes it safeguards the integrity of our election system. The US Senate is unwilling to pass this legislation, but it wants to advance other legislation instead. President Trump is playing hardball. He said yesterday he will not sign either the Senate’s FISA extension bill or housing bill until they pass the SAVE Act.
President Trump is attempting to get recalcitrant legislators to act on his legislation. He may not succeed, but at least he is taking on the tough fight for legislation he believes in.
Hughes, by contrast, sounds like someone looking for a reason to fail. She claims that since the legislature will override her veto anyway, why bother trying to get a full PFD? That is the wrong attitude to take. The willingness of candidate Hughes to give up the battle before the fight even starts is astounding and disqualifies her for the job of governor.
If I were Edna DeVries or Bernadette Wilson, I would take advantage of Hughes’s mistake today. I would write an Op-Ed and send it to every political website and newspaper in Alaska, explaining not only why a full PFD is possible, but also why Shelley Hughes is wrong on the issue.
Hughes just made the biggest political blunder of her career, and her opponents are sure to capitalize on it. Voters will pay attention to Hughes’ faux pas; she had better rethink her position on this issue soon, or it may cost her the election.
Greg Sarber is a lifelong Alaskan. He is a petroleum engineer who spent his career working on Alaska’s North Slope. Now retired, he lives with his family in Homer, Alaska. Greg is a former board member of Alaska Gold Communications, Inc., the publisher of Must Read Alaska.
