The Alaska Senate Republicans, made up of six members who are serving in the minority after seven five Republicans jumped over to join the Democrat caucus, released the names of which minority members will serve on committees during the 2025-26 legislative session:
Sen. James Kaufman of Anchorage and Sen.-elect Mike Cronk of Tok will be seated on Senate Finance Committee.
Sen. Shelley Hughes of Palmer and Sen. Robert Myers of North Pole will be on the Resources Committee
Other committee assignments include:
Mike Cronk – Finance, Arctic Affairs, Ethics (alternate)
Shelley Hughes – Resources, Health & Social Services, World Trade
James Kaufman – Finance
Robert Myers – Natural Resources, Judiciary
Mike Shower, Senate Minority Leader of Wasilla – Transportation, Rules, Joint Armed Services, Committee on Committees
Rob Yundt, Wasilla – Labor & Commerce, State Affairs, Community & Regional Affairs, Ethics
The Alaska Legislature will gavel in on Jan. 21.
I see that 7, count them, Seven R’s that need to get Their S— together….or get handled in a primary.
Absolutely correct in your assessment Guitarguy3120. RINOS who run as Republicans and vote as Democrats. Primary them and get some actual Republicans to take their place, not Murkowski type candidates like are in office now.
Guitar: You do know the primary election will be one that is wide open, not closed members of a particular party, right?
Sorry, I must have been standing on your cape….Yes, I know how it works.
It’s a great Christmas present knowing that the illegal binding caucus won’t have it all their way for the next two years 😀
If I had voted for one of those 5 turncoats, I would be incensed. Way to screw the voters >:-(. They need recalls started against them.
Please King Jesus! Change their hearts… Especially Cathy Giessel!
13 Republicans and 7 Democrats. And yet, the Democrats are in charge. Must be something in the water down in Juneau. Even a second grader can do the math. RINOs are such mindless, skalliwags.
At least two of the “Republicans” campaigned that they would caucus with Republicans if they out numbered Democrats, and yet Kelly Merrick and Jesse Bjorkman are caucusing with Democrats. The districts both of the are supposed to represent are supposedly conservative districts. The majority of the electorate in these districts are obviously not very well informed about who it is they continue to vote for.
All of the “republicans” will not stand up against the demorats because they are afraid that the d’s will stop working with them and listening to them. What good does this do? The d’s throw the “republicans” some crumbs and the “republicans” are happy. This is why the People are losing this state – we have spineless “republicans” who don’t want to stand firm.
Indeed, they should be paying attention to how things are going on the national level. People are tired of this kind of game everywhere.
Kaufman is an anti PFD Democrat. The Finance committee only has one conservative.
Go, Shelley!
And let’s move the capitol to Anchorage – Juneau wants quiet, and Anchorage needs a boost and a raison d’etre
They voted to move it to Willow in 1982. They’ve never “appropriated the funds.”
Good on Shelly , Mike & Rob. Let’s get some projects moving.
So Senator Yundt will be the first fiscal grown-up to have a crack at the new defined benefits retirement bill, which has likely already been distributed to Democrats and union lobbyists. I hope he is studying the matter right now! His staffers need their ears to the ground, and they need to learn actuarial concepts and vocabulary. There will be huge union pressure, actuarial obfuscation, and forthright dishonesty. He will have to push back hard to protect the state general fund, the PFD, and the entire future of the state by burying this defined benefit idea in the graveyard of stupid notions.
Any republican that caucuses with the democrats should be thrown out of the republican party and when it comes time for their re-election, the republican party should refuse any financial help to those RINOS.
So did Jesse Bjorkman change his mind about caucusing with the democrats? I was livid when I read he was going to and wrote, told him that, and asked why. Never got a response. Will not vote for him again.
He joined the Democrat-led caucus. -sd
I know it is probably whistling in the wind to share my perspective on this forum, but I’m really, really confused about this coalition being Democratic. HMMMM.. Isn’t the Senate President an R, and the majority leader is an R? And the majority whip is an R? It seems to me the coalition has selected good people for each of the leadership roles.
I talked to a Senator last year about how the bipartisan coalition was working, and he shared how it had removed a lot of war atmosphere of R’s versus D’s. He said that when a Senator has an area of concern or a bill to introduce, they look for others who share that concern with little regard to R or D. Seems to me that is how we get the best government…people who are more concerned about the issues facing us Alaskans than about the Rep v Dem power struggle that stops the legislature from being able to do their jobs.
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