Three attorneys from an Outside law firm along with three Alaska residents have created a group called “Alaskans for Posterity,” a name that is meant to confuse voters in Alaska with another well-known group operating in the state for many years: “Americans for Prosperity Alaska.”
Alaskans for Posterity is a partisan political group organized as a 501(c)4 nonprofit in 2020 that has recently been running radio ads against Gov. Mike Dunleavy. By doing so, it has broken campaign laws, because the group has not disclosed its top three donors. No complaint is known to have been filed against the group, which has been attacking the governor with a major media buy.
A 501(c)4 can run issue ads, but once they identify an actual candidate, they must be transparent about the source of their funds.
The group also put out a mailer to all Anchorage residents earlier this month, attacking the Save Anchorage group and also attacking those who oppose the compulsory mask ordinance just passed by the Assembly. On that mailer, the group didn’t identify itself, which is legal because it appeared to be talking about issues only, rather than specific candidates. But it is also an illegal mailer, because Assemblywoman Jamie Allard is mentioned in it, and she is a declared candidate for reelection to the Assembly.
The group also paid for a letter sent by Providence Alaska Medical Center encouraging Anchorage residents to support the mask ordinance:
It’s apparent that Alaskans for Posterity has money to burn in Alaska politics but isn’t telling people who it is, where the money comes from, and who is pulling the strings.
And, what’s more, the group is trying to trick voters by posing as Americans for Prosperity, an action that also may run afoul of campaign laws, should a complaint be filed with the Alaska Public Offices Commission.
Alaskans for Posterity’s incorporators are attorneys from Wisconsin Kieran Coe, Zach Bemis and Mike Wittenwyler, all heavily involved in Democrat-style smash-mouth politics. They are experts on concealing the identities of donors to such 501(c)4s, according to their biographies.
The Alaskans for Posterity legal officers are Nathan Ord, a young and newly minted medical doctor in Juneau, Reid Magdanz, a former legislative aide to Democrats from Kotzebue, and Elizabeth Johnson of Anchorage, who serves as the group’d president.
The group’s address is a home on 22nd Avenue near downtown Anchorage.
The incorporation papers show that the address is the same location where people associated with the Ship Creek Group, a political consultancy in Anchorage, have lived. Ship Creek Group is run by John Henry Heckendorn, the former campaign manager for former Gov. Bill Walker.
Those residents who have recently lived at the address include current Ship Creek Group partner Ira Slomski Pritz, and immediate past managing partner Allie Banwell. Pritz joined Ship Creek Group after working for former Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz. Banwell ran Ship Creek Group while Heckendorn was running the Walker campaign for reelection, and then when he moved out of state to work for the CEO of AirBnB.
Other persons who recently used that home as their address include another alum of the Ship Creek Group, Jennifer Marie Stryker, who now works at the Alaska Center (for the Environment), and Alex di Suvero, who is associated with the Alaska Public Interest Research Group.
As for Magdanz, he worked as an aide to Democrat Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tompkins, one of Ship Creek Group’s close political allies.
Ord, the Juneau doctor, and Henry-Heckendorn were classmates at Whitman College.
Americans for Prosperity, the conservative group, formed in Alaska in 2014 and has been active in Alaska politics since. Recently, Bernadette Wilson was named the state director for the group.
Thanks for the reporting here Suzanne. I’ve already received internet messages from them!
Thanks for this info. It’s always good to know who is truly whom among the newly attempted inundaters and overwhelmers who take so much from the “table”.
Probably another Soros bunch. These people are like weeds.
“Alaskans For Posteriors”
The most appropriate name! ?
So much for dark money. BM2 really is just another case of diarrhea.
Thanks for the background info Suzanne!! Always good to know the background history when the politics gets heated up!! Fortunately our state is small enough that some historical research can be extremely important for the voting public to understand!!
Lincoln project junior
Bunch of commies.
A bunch of potheads.
This is pretty obviously intentionally misleading and once again poof the left cannot succeed without deception and sneaky actions. Sounds like some clarification mailers need to be sent ASAP from Americans for Prosperity.
Judging by how many people who have been duped by the covid hysteria, I imagine all the scammers will be coming out of the woodwork to get money from the sheep. A sucker born every day. Now it is easier than ever to see who they are. Easy pickins.
Did you donate to Trump’s stolen election fundraiser?
Communist enemies of Freedom and subversives who wish to overthrow the Republic.
The left will continue this until the completely win Alaska or until someone on the right decides to beat them at their own game.
File complaints against these radical attorneys at the Wisconsin Bar Association for intentional misrepresentation and for purposely misleading the public. These charges go to the honesty and character of the lawyers. Bar complaints should be used against them for their misconduct. Let them hire malpractice attorneys, at their own expense, to save them from disbarment.
I got one in the mail and sent it back to them with a big “FU” & FJB too!
Used a black sharpie, I hope they get the hint!
But since they are dimlibby idiots, I am sure they were confused!
Idiots with law degrees aren’t really that dangerous. Because no matter how they cut it, they’re still,…………..IDIOTS.
Bet that’s gonna sting!
Yes and why are there no consequences for the campaign law violations? What does that take?
Go get ’em, Bernadette.
The Left can aways find faces and places to do their dirty work. It will be most interesting to find out where the money comes from. And it will eventually become known. IMO, without dark money from some fairly evil people from elsewhere, the Left in Alaska would be much weaker.
Thanks for letting us know who sent out that stupid mailer. I am hearing radio ads from these morons as well.
Don’t have the integrity or courage to be transparent.
Oh where oh where is the state attorney’s office? They should be all over this with all the attention elections are getting now.
This is great reporting, with its foundation in journalistic research, something sadly absent in the contemporary mainstream media, including (and especially) in local Anchorage media.
I’ll watch this with interest. Perhaps the local hacks that have been the front of the dark money outsiders will pay a personal prices for their complicity. Personal lawsuits, if viable, might be one avenue. At any rate this deserves the attention of APOC and other agencies with jurisdiction.
Thanks for exposing these miscreants, shining a light upon them. Roaches always run towards darkness.
I also thank you for this information. I like names to keep track of.
Just like the Clowns In America infiltrating other countries and stirring up wars under the guise of “Christian Resistance” to overthrow governments. Rotten commie luciferian liars.
I second Mark’s comment – where is the Americans for prosperity, the Alaska Attorney General’s office, and the Dunleavy campaign people? Why are they not jumping all over this? And yes, there is the Walker connection as usual. When will Alaskans get enough of the guy and the company he keeps? Someone had better jump on this real soon. The response should be quick and legal. Don’t let these snakes keep rattling too long or as they say, a lie told often enough will be believed.
Reid Magdanz recently was elected to a seat on the Northwest Arctic Borough Assembly. He was the top vote getter.
Great reporting. Now we need to know who the owners of the property are. I bet it is another LLC formed by the same bunch of liberals and liars.
Seeing the efforts they go to, to hide the truth about WHO they are tells me everything I need to know.
Liars, schemers, misleaders, afraid to publicly identify themselves. Cowards and frauds.
If you can’t announce WHO you are and WHAT you’re doing, then you’re attempting to deceive. Get the he!! out of Alaskan politics.
Thanks for redefining this group “Posterity”(devil is in the works) verses “Prosperity” (angels)..
These game players have been active on Facebook for over 6 months. My first post on their page was: these people are trying to hijack the good and powerful group that Americans for Prosperity has attained. The problem is, they open their mouths and prove their lies.
Follow the money, y’all!!!
Portland? The home base of Antifa, BLM anarchists burning and destroying to push a Marxist color revolution? No thanks! Keep your failed ideology in Cuba.
Thanks to Suzanne. This article is a prime example of top-notch investigative journalism.
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