In a major moment for her campaign, Alaska gubernatorial candidate Bernadette Wilson received a high-profile endorsement at a rally in Anchorage on Sunday: Florida Congressman Byron Donalds, a national figure and close confidante and ally of President Donald Trump, taped a special video message for Wilson, calling her a “true conservative, committed to America First principles.” Donalds himself carries Trump’s endorsement in Florida’s governor’s race to replace Gov Ron DeSantis, who is term-limited.
The rally, with a packed house of supporters, featured a lineup of conservative voices from Alaska, including:
- Pastor Ron Hoffman of Mountain City Church
- Father James Moore, Holy Family
- Captain Dino Sutherland, star of Alaska Fish Wars on National Geographic Wild
- Jiujitsu fighter and Moms for Liberty Anchorage chapter chair Gabby Ide (not speaking on behalf of group)
- Steven Holmstock, with Bikers for America (not speaking on behalf of group)
- Pam Melin, business executive and president of the Valley Republican Women of Alaska, who formally introduced Wilson
- Theo Ransum, business lending officer and emcee for the event
Wilson, a business owner at Denali Disposal, focused her remarks on the need for action, not just talk, on topics such as infrastructure and education, vowing that her administration would build roads and restore Alaska’s schools to national prominence. When the next cabinet members visit Alaska, she said, it should be for a ribbon cutting for a project that is done.
Wilson also shared a personal story about a weekend fire that occurred this winter, which destroyed her decade-old garbage business, including garbage trucks and equipment that went up in flames that burned for an entire day before being extinguished by firefighters.
Describing how she worked tirelessly over the weekend to ensure her employees still had jobs when they returned to work on that following Monday morning, she committed to the room on Saturday that she “will bring that level of grit and determination to the governor’s seat.”
Though Wilson is a political veteran, she has never run for office herself. She has run campaigns and state ballot initiatives, and was most recently a senior campaign advisor to Congressman Nick Begich and original sponsor of the Repeal Now, to repeal ranked choice voting in Alaska.
She reminded the crowd that Ronald Reagan, Donald Trump, and Wilson’s own great-uncle — former Alaska Gov. Wally Hickel — all entered high office without prior elected experience. The same could be said about Congressman Nick Begich, who came from the business community.
Her campaign team, already announced, includes CJ Koan, Paul Smith, Ben Yoho, Brad Herold, and Stephanie Williams, among several others. She revealed that she and Congressman Donalds share a top campaign advisor in Chris Hudson.
Wilson deeply roots her candidacy in her Alaska background, including her family, which has strong business ties, her great-uncle Gov. Hickel. Her heritage includes being a member of the Naknek Native Village Council.
After seeing her speak and talking with her after a small gathering I would say she is definitly up to the job. But putting together the whole team will be the challenge. It will be interesting to see who she picks for her cabinet, as that is where the rubber meets the road.
Insightful comment.
She does not have the years of life experience, knowledge or news worthy accomplishment’s that reflect she has done something positive for a lot of people, particularly Alaskan’s.
Summarize; What has she really done?
Best that Byron keeps his nose out of Alaska politics.
Not sure why you don’t like Byron. Is it because he is black? A Republican? Endorsed Nick Begich and convinced Trump to endorse Nick Begich? Is an America First guy who is hoping for another Republican governor who he can work with to Make America Great Again?
Best you move back to California, Byron is a damn good man.
Yes that endorsement probably hurts her as we do not need outsiders involved with Alaska at all!! I am not for her or against her but this does not help her in my opinion.
“Bernie” is off to a really great start. Her candidacy is infectiously thrilling. She will make a terrific governor.
She is the ‘Right’ Bernie 😊!
A candidate who knows how to run a successful business and understands budgeting and fiscal responsibility would definitely get my vote over someone who only has government employment experience. Too many of our elected officials are of the later. Unless they have had some education in finance, business admin or economics most are better equipped at only spending and not fiscal responsibility. Our current legislature is pretty much proof of that. I am keeping an eye on Bernadette for sure.
B Now, what a racist thing to say about a great American. Shame on you.
B Now is just another racist Democrat. Can’t stand that a person of color is actually intelligent, powerful, and conservative. B Now is envious too. Can’t stand that a person of color has so much more to offer than does B Now. B Now is a LOSER.
Now you all wait one minute here, beating up on B Now.
All s/he said was that s/he does not appreciate some politician from Florida sticking his nose in our affairs, nothing more nothing less.
Looking at the comments the racist ones are all from Bullwinkle, Citizenkane and you Tiffany. Is that where your mind immediately goes? Shame on you!
I like Rep Byron and I am a fan of Bernadette’s. I am all about what he has to say on the national stage. However frankly out of state endorsements do not move the needle for me either. Everyone always complains about outside politicians sticking their nose in our affairs, yet here instead of taking the comment at face value, you immediately make it all about race and reading meaning into an opinion that is simply not there? Maybe you all should look in the mirror!
In before the homely women crowd starts their catty commenting. I’m prognosticating at least three.
Remarkable!
Bernadette and her family will be in our prayers.
So glad she is running She has my vote
We don’t need to make the governor’s race a national issue, especially the gentleman from Florida. We don’t need another four years of the Mike Dunleavy administration. She’s a bye.
There’s some ‘splaining’ to do here folks. Operatives often work in the middle rather than for the best candidates. Look deeper folks and don’t get sucked in.
I like Byron, maybe this gal aint a bad candidate…but we’ll see how she debates.
I want to make my thoughts clear. I have watched Alaska governors come and go over the last several decades. I’ve yet to see one with a real plan.
I wanted to share what I consider the Trumpian approach to common sense leadership and reform for Alaska in 2026. Let’s be candid with each other. If common sense does not control state leadership after 2026, I believe common sense in our state government will go the way of the Dodo.
Alaska must move decisively from managed dependency to earned freedom by dismantling the bureaucratic entitlement complex that has eroded individual agency, family responsibility, and economic vitality. The expansion of Medicaid, SNAP, housing subsidies, and behavioral health grants, while originally intended to reduce suffering, has instead institutionalized poverty, disincentivized work, and concentrated power in an unelected administrative class.
Meanwhile, the diversion of Permanent Fund Dividend revenues to fund this machinery strips Alaskans of ownership over their resource wealth.
To restore self-governance and opportunity, Alaska must reduce state control, return decision-making to families and communities, and reallocate public resources directly to citizens, not through bureaucracies, but through local control, individual empowerment, and constitutional reform. This requires a complete policy shift: shrinking welfare-state governance, strengthening the private sector, and building a culture that rewards work, contribution, and self-reliance, not procedural compliance.
For too long, Alaska politics has been treated like a recreational spectacle. Alaska politics have become a game for insiders, where the few profit at the direct expense of ordinary Alaskans. The result? Citizens demeaned, voices ignored, and a bloated, incompetent bureaucracy that expands in direct proportion to the public’s frustration. If any gubernatorial candidate is serious about delivering real reform, their campaign must transition immediately from slogans to substance and strategy. That begins by expanding and sharpening two core areas of their early campaign and anchoring them to the Taking Back Alaska reform blueprint.
A) Set a Focused Agenda of Institutional Reform
Rather than scatter efforts across dozens of issues, the campaign must draw a hard line: no more than four institutional challenges will define the next administration’s first 18 months.
These must be:
1. Health Care and Welfare Reform
o Repeal Medicaid expansion.
o Break up the centralized health bureaucracy.
o Redirect funds to frontline care and community solutions.
2. Education Overhaul
o End DEED’s monopoly over Alaska’s children.
o Replace school district bureaucracies with education savings accounts and parent-driven models.
o Enshrine school choice and performance accountability.
3. Energy Sovereignty
o Unleash permitting and resource development.
o Assert state control under ANILCA and RS 2477.
o Eliminate state-fueled ESG energy policies that drive up costs.
4. Permanent Fund Protection and Restoration
o Enact a constitutional amendment protecting the PFD formula.
o Reverse decades of legislative theft. Return what is owed to eligible Alaskans.
o Treat the dividend as a property right, not a political bargaining chip.
These reforms are not radical. They are straightforward, institutional course corrections. Each one is designed to immediately impact Alaskans’ daily lives while restoring constitutional order and economic sovereignty.
B) Build a “Day One” Governance Team
Waiting until after the election to formulate policy is what weak administrations do. The new Alaska governor must develop and announce an administration transition and operations team and reform plan to be executed now. This must include a committed group that unanimously agrees to implement the full reform agenda at the exact moment of swearing in with no wasted time.
Time is the new administration’s enemy.
• This is non-negotiable!
• Alaskans are tired of candidates who talk tough on the campaign trail, then fold under bureaucratic pressure or worse allow centralized state government to flourish.
• A prepared, principled, and pre-aligned administration transition and operations team signals that this campaign is not theater. And with election results, it’s a mandate.
C) Strategically Target Winnable Districts
To govern effectively, every gubernatorial candidate cannot go it alone. Building a legislative coalition during the campaign itself is an imperative. It works by:
• Recruiting and supporting candidates in swing or soft-blue districts.
• Uniting conservatives across party lines, Republicans, independents, libertarians, independents, constitutionalists, and nonpartisan reformers.
• Prioritizing areas that can be flipped red with shared resources, coordinated messaging, and grassroots mobilization.
This is how you build a governor-led legislative majority, not after the election, but during the campaign and never change course.
Conclusion: From Protest to Power
If every gubernatorial candidate embraces this very disciplined, strategic approach, he or she won’t just be running a campaign, but actively and aggressively laying the foundation for Alaska’s political reformation.
The Taking Back Alaska plan isn’t just a vision; it’s a framework for action.
You know I think I captured the most important part of that in 3 sentences. Just sayin Michael.