By: James Brooks, Alaska Beacon

Six years ago, Meda DeWitt was seeking to recall Gov. Mike Dunleavy from office. Now, she’s looking to take his position.

Last week, DeWitt became the 17th person and second independent to file a letter of intent for Alaska’s gubernatorial race.

Speaking by phone, she said a majority of the candidates in the race are Republican and all working off the same talking points.

“We need somebody who isn’t owned by a specific party and required to use those talking points shared among all of the party, and really listen to Alaskans and get the job done,” she said.

DeWitt is a lifelong Alaskan, born and raised in the state. She is Tlingit from the Naanya.aayí clan in Wrangell, she is senior state manager for the Wilderness Society in Alaska and president of Yak-Tat K̲wáan Inc., the village corporation for Yakutat. 

A traditional healer, she has 20 years of experience as a community and political organizer.

“I have experience in working with the different components that a community needs to thrive,” she said. “And I believe that our state has some hard realities that we need to address. You know, we need to address climate change. We have 141 communities that are going to have to be relocated.”

DeWitt said the state’s budget will need “some tough love” but that the next governor should also be prepared to support the base needs of what the state is supposed to provide its residents.

Asked why she believes she’s the best person to organize that, she said, “Well, Alaska needs a mom. My elders that I work with have asked me to run. Communities have asked me to run. My children have asked me to run. They believe that I can make a difference, and so I personally may never have just chosen on my own to step up into that space, but when you have your elders in your life that matter, your children in your life that matter, and your community in your life that matter, that ask you to do it, then you have to take the time to honor that.”

The recall campaign against Dunleavy launched in 2019, after the governor proposed sweeping budget cuts. It alleged a variety of illegal and incompetent acts.

Dunleavy’s attorney general rejected the campaign, stalling it until the following year, when it was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic emergency. The campaign ultimately fell short of the signatures needed to force a recall vote.

“He cut safety, he cut education, he cut elder benefits, he cut all of these things that underpin being able to live here and survive,” she said, recalling the campaign. “Alaska is hard to live in.”

She noted that Dunleavy now has the worst approval rating of any governor in the United States.

“The recall, even though we didn’t recall him, we did hold him in check. He knew that that was always looming there in the background for his entire eight years,” she said.

The next governor will have to deal with tough issues, DeWitt said. 

“We have to talk about ferries in Southeast,” she said. “We have to talk about coastal erosion on the West Coast, we have to talk about our oil and gas dependency and how that’s not healthy for us. Also, who’s talking about the fact that we ship in 95% of our food and goods?” 

DeWitt sees her campaign as one focused on issues that people are talking about.

“I think that this is a people’s campaign that’s going to take people power to do it, and I look forward to working with Alaskans in the process,” she said. “And I humbly ask for their support and their vote and to be given the opportunity to serve.”

Candidates for Governor

• Former state Sen. Tom Begich (Democrat)
• Former state Sen. Click Bishop (Republican)
• Former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson (Republican) and Lt. Gov. candidate Josh Church (Republican)
• Former state revenue commissioner Adam Crum (Republican)
• Current state Sen. Matt Claman (Democrat)
• Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom (Republican)
• Matanuska-Susitna Borough Mayor Edna DeVries (Republican)
• Organizer Meda DeWitt (independent)
• Kasilof resident Jessica Faircloth (independent)
• Anchorage podiatrist and state medical board member Matt Heilala (Republican)
• Former state Sen. Shelley Hughes (Republican)
• Former state Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (Democrat)
• Author Hank Kroll (Registered Republican) with Lt. Gov. candidate Tommy Nicholson (Undeclared)
• Angoon resident and former teacher James William Parkin IV (Republican)
• Former Attorney General Treg Taylor (Republican)
• Palmer resident Bruce Walden (Republican)
• Businesswoman Bernadette Wilson (Republican) with Lt. Gov. candidate Mike Shower (Republican)