Southwest Senate candidates outline priorities

Four candidates for a Southwest Alaska Senate seat disagreed this week on how to lower costs for rural households.

The forum, hosted Wednesday by KYUK in Bethel and KUCB in Unalaska, covered fisheries, energy, education funding, and the size of the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend. The candidates are Dillingham independent Bryce Edgmon, Republican Darren Deacon of Kalskag, Democrat Wassilie Guy of Napaskiak, and independent Richard "Rick" Robb of Bethel. Edgmon currently serves as House Speaker. The seat is open because Lyman Hoffman, the state's longest-serving legislator, is retiring.

Senate District S spans Western Alaska and extends to Cook Inlet, Bristol Bay, and Aleutian islands reachable only by boat and plane. Each of the state's 20 senators represents about 36,800 residents and serves a four-year term. In the August primary, Edgmon led with 37.9% of the vote, followed by Deacon at 23.9%, Guy at 18.9%, and Robb at 11.4%. Turnout was 20.3%, with 4,184 ballots counted.

Salmon runs on the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers have collapsed in recent years, and the candidates split on how to respond. Robb said he would prioritize restoring fisheries. "We have to explore hatcheries. We have to explore anything we can do to get our fish, and we need to address trawling," he said. Deacon also named fishing as a focus, along with lowering living costs. Guy called for protecting the Power Cost Equalization program, a state subsidy that offsets high energy costs in rural communities. Edgmon said he would work to increase funding for the Home Heating Assistance Program, which is funded at $11 million. "I think we're going to have to come back and perhaps double or triple that," he said.

The candidates also split on the Alaska Permanent Fund dividend. Guy and Deacon said they would push for a full dividend, which is calculated under a formula in state law that has not been used since 2015. Deacon said a full dividend would pay between $3,000 and $12,000 per family. Edgmon said such a promise lacks support in Juneau. "The reality is, in Juneau, there are no votes for a full PFD," he said. "Any candidate to me that says that they're going to promise a full PFD is providing basically a false promise." Robb said he would change the law to pay a larger dividend funded by Permanent Fund growth, and Guy said he would pursue corporate investment policy to grow the fund. Legislators have used a surplus dividend since 2016. This year's payment was $1,000 plus $200 in energy relief per eligible Alaskan.

All four candidates said they support adequate state funding for education. Robb proposed an education endowment fund and forward funding. Deacon called for more investment in school maintenance, citing building deterioration in Sleetmute and Aniak, and said he would support changing a law that cuts funding for schools with fewer than 10 students. Edgmon said he supports the bipartisan task force examining how the state funds education and wants to protect rural schools if the K-12 funding formula changes. Guy said he would support adequate funding for schools.

The candidates also addressed healthcare. Deacon noted a need for more dental care. Robb pointed to behavioral health and suicide prevention and said telehealth could reach more people. Robb and Edgmon raised concerns about the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which sets work requirements for some Medicaid recipients beginning in 2027. "The eligibility status is going to be in question for a lot of recipients," Edgmon said.

All four candidates said they would work with state and federal agencies on recovery from last year's Typhoon Halong and on long-term disaster planning for some communities. They also agreed the state should fund education. Edgmon has raised nearly $55,000, according to campaign finance reports filed one month ahead of the general election with the Alaska Public Offices Commission.