On any given weekend all year long, Sen. Lyman Hoffman can be seen filling up his cart at the Dimond Blvd Costco in Anchorage. He is known to spend most of his time in Anchorage, even though he represents Senate District S, the Bethel-to-Adak area. That is something that has irked fur trapper Willie Keppel of Quinhagak. Keppel has lived in rural Alaska for over 40 years and is often heard on KRUP radio out of Dillingham, and KEDI radio out of Bethel during the morning talk show hosted by Stevie Ray.
Keppel wants to start a recall petition to get rid of the Hoffman reign in Western Alaska. However, he has a challenge on his hands: Senate Seat S is huge, with a coastline that stretches from the Yukon River to the tip of the Aleutian island and back to the western part of Cook Inlet. And Keppel lives in a remote town of 776 people south of Bethel.
“Lyman Hoffman has been misrepresenting his residency for years. The Division of Elections didn’t do due diligence when we requested he be removed from the ballot in 2022,” Keppel said. But with a new Division of Elections direction, Keppel is hoping he can get access to his cell phone location records, credit card spending location, and Alaska Airlines mileage records.
The letter that Keppel received from the Division of Elections in 2022:
Keppel says that the U.S. Census uses “intent” as a qualifying factor.
“We’re calling malarkey,” Keppel said. He pointed out that for Anchorage homeless people, the Census rules that their residence is “where they lay their heads, most commonly.”
Hoffman, Keppel has reminded radio listeners often, lays his head on a pillow in a home on Snowline Drive on the Anchorage hillside. He also has a place in Bethel. He says Hoffman only uses his Bethel house as a fish camp.
“Lyman never shows up until the king salmon shows up in June,” Keppel said.
“We’re intent on having the final say in Senate S, as the Legislature refuses to tighten up the rules and force legislators to live in their district, and worse yet, the Division of Elections has fully embraced the ‘if you lie, we sure ain’t checking’ policy for incumbents,” Keppel said.
“You would never get away with living in Sand Lake and running for a seat out in the Valley,” Keppel said.
Keppel, if he goes ahead with his recall efforts, would need 744 signatures from the district.
“So if you are living in-between the Yukon River and the tip of the Aleutian Islands, are a registered voter of Senate District S, we’re asking interested parties to DM me if you would like to be part of a recall Lyman Hoffman committee. Or, email me at [email protected]. The corruption has to end,” Keppel said on social media.
