By SUZANNE DOWNING
June 1, 2026 – The final day of candidate filing for Alaska’s Aug. 18 primary election brought another wave of gubernatorial candidates into the race, including formal filings from former Sen. Lesil McGuire, former Gov. Bill Walker, and North Pole resident Destry Payne Sr.
By Monday afternoon, 16 governor-lieutenant governor tickets had filed with the Alaska Division of Elections, making the 2026 governor’s race the most crowded in state history. By far. The primary ballot will be exceedingly long this August.
Among the newest additions is Lesil McGuire, who filed a letter of intent with the Alaska Public Offices Commission last week. Today she filed with the Division of Elections with running mate Elizabeth Rexford, a former legislative staff member. McGuire, a former Republican state senator from Anchorage, is running as undeclared, not a Republican. Since leaving office, she has become one of Alaska’s most outspoken supporters of ranked-choice voting and open primaries, frequently defending the election system in public forums and media appearances.
McGuire served in the Legislature from 2001 to 2017. Her campaign filing lists an Anchorage address and a campaign website at lesilmcguire4governor.com. That site is blank as of publication.
Also formally filing Monday was former Gov. Bill Walker, who is running with former Revenue Commissioner Randall Hoffbeck. Walker, who served as governor from 2014 to 2018, is making another bid for the state’s highest office after sitting out the 2022 race.
Walker and Hoffbeck are running as nonpartisan candidates. Hoffbeck served as commissioner of the Department of Revenue during the disastrous Walker administration and has remained active in public policy discussions involving state finances and energy development.
Another ticket entering the race is Destry J. Payne Sr. of North Pole, who filed with running mate Cliff Silvers. Both are running as undeclared candidates. Payne’s campaign is based in North Pole and has launched a campaign website at destryforakgovernor.com.
Several candidates remain listed as “pending” certification by the Division of Elections, while others have already been certified.
The current gubernatorial field at the Division of Elections (separate from APOC) includes:
- Tom Begich / Julia Hnilicka
- Click Bishop / Greta Schuerch
- Dave Bronson / Josh Church
- Edna DeVries / George Hightower
- Shelley Hughes / Blake Gettys
- Hank Kroll / Tommy Nicholson III
- James “JP4” Parkin / Ram Greer
- Adam Crum / Bob Craig
- Meda DeWitt / Christopher Steere
- Matt Heilala / Jesse Sumner
- Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins / Zac Johnson
- Lesil McGuire / Elizabeth Rexford
- Destry Payne Sr. / Cliff Silvers
- Treg Taylor / Candi English
- Bill Walker / Randy Hoffbeck
- Bernadette Wilson / Mike Shower
Sen. Matt Claman had not filed with the Division of Elections by publication time. This story will be updated.
Bill Walker files for office … but which office? Governor???
8 thoughts on “More gubernatorial candidates file as June 1 deadline brings crowded field into focus”
…it wasn’t disastrous! He did what he had to do! We should be showing more appreciation for Bill Walker.
Go Walker!
Go far, far away, walker, preferably the Middle East somewhere , under a bomb
Since Bill Walker determined to sell Alaska to China, It might be better if you move to China, because that’s what would happened.. Bill Walker was a “TURNCOAT” to anything America stood for.
Susan, It might be nice to place a (r)not (R)for those RINO’s behind their names. We know many of these profess to be Republicans for the elections, but then turn (r) when it comes to the Legislation session,
Bill Walker is an old, destitute schmuck. A broken, disgraced fella who will always be remembered as being the one who unilaterally shrunk Alaskan’s PFD, and,
the mentor and enabler of the pedophile Lt. Governor, Byron Mallot. And that all you need to know.
Plus Walker signed SB 91 which led to a crime wave in Alaska when the hoods realized they would face no consequences for their crimes. And he almost turned over our natural gas rights to communist China. He is in it not to win it but to split the votes and favor the demos.
Total effing goat rope! The most important vote anyone will make is to REPEAL RANKED CHOICE VOTING !!!! Vote YES on 2!!!!!!
Haha!! Claman didn’t file!!!!! Too late, sucker!!