Rep. Mary Peltola has been holding “meet and greet” campaign events all over the state, and she is boldly advertising free drinks at all of them. In Fairbanks last week, her campaign headquarters in the center of town posted a sign that read, “FREE BEER!”
campaign headquarters.
Peltola’s campaign headquarters is at 514 2nd Ave., just a couple of blocks from where inebriated Alaskans line the sidewalks of downtown Fairbanks and huddle in the doorways of businesses as tourists walk by.
Peltola’s region of Western Alaska is largely dry, with most outlying communities banning alcohol importation and sales, due to the troubles with addiction in Alaska Native communities.
In her hometown of Kwethluk, students marched for sobriety in 2016, to raise awareness about the scourge of alcohol in Alaska Native villages. Their banner said, “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.”
It’s one thing to offer “beverages,” which many event organizers do. But it’s another thing to boldly advertise free alcohol. Some have suggested that what she has done is illegal, citing AS 04.16. 015 which states that offering or delivering, as a marketing device to the general public, free or complimentary drinks, is illegal under AS 04.16. 015.
Nick Begich, running for Congress against Peltola, called her out on social media by saying, “When you can’t run on your record, you’re left with just one option…”
Peltola, however, has played fast and loose with the law. Earlier this year, she had a campaign event at a public school in North Pole during school hours, something that is strictly forbidden by law.
