Mike Dunleavy (politician)


Michael James Dunleavy is an American politician serving as the 12th governor of Alaska. Dunleavy was a Republican member of the Alaska Senate from 2013 to 2018. He defeated former Democratic United States senator Mark Begich in the 2018 gubernatorial election after incumbent governor Bill Walker dropped out of the race.

Early life and education

Dunleavy is from Scranton, Pennsylvania. He completed a bachelor's degree in history at Misericordia University in 1983. He earned his master's degree in education from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He moved to Alaska in 1983, and pursued a career as a teacher, school principal and school district superintendent. Prior to his election to the Alaska Senate, Dunleavy served on the Matanuska-Susitna Borough Board, including two years as the board's president.

Local elections

Dunleavy challenged incumbent state senator Linda Menard for the District D August 28, 2012 Republican Primary and won with 2,802 votes. He was unopposed in the November 6 general election and won with 11,724 votes against write-in candidates.

Governor of Alaska

Election

In 2017 Dunleavy announced he would run for governor in 2018, but abandoned the race in September 2017, citing heart problems. In December 2017 he announced his return to the race.
He resigned his senate seat effective January 15, 2018, to focus on his campaign. Retired United States Air Force lieutenant colonel Mike Shower was chosen as his successor by Governor Bill Walker and confirmed by the Alaska Senate caucus after numerous replacement candidates were rejected.

Tenure

Dunleavy and Kevin Meyer were the Republican nominees for governor and lieutenant governor of Alaska, respectively, and were elected in the November 2018 general election. Dunleavy was sworn in on December 3, 2018. He appointed Kevin Clarkson to be Alaska attorney general.
On June 28, 2019, Dunleavy exercised line-item veto authority as governor to make cuts of $433 million, including a cut of $130 million of state contributions to the University of Alaska. The same day, he also vetoed $335,000 from the budget of the Alaska Supreme Court, stating that he did so because the Court had held that the state was constitutionally required to provide public funding for elective abortions.

Recall attempt

On July 15, 2019, an effort to recall Dunleavy began following a public backlash over his cuts to public assistance, education and the University of Alaska. Signature gathering for the recall began on August 1 in several locations across the state. To have the petition certified by the Division of Elections, the petitioners were required to submit 28,501 signatures. On September 5, 2019, volunteers submitted 49,006 petition signatures to the Alaska Division of Elections for certification. On November 4, 2019, the Division of Elections declined to certify the recall petition. The Division acknowledged that the petitioners had submitted sufficient signatures and paid the necessary fees, but asserted that "the four allegations against the governor 'fail to meet any of the listed grounds for recall—neglect of duty, incompetence, or lack of fitness'". The petitioners stated that they would appeal the Division's decision. In January 2020, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Eric Aarseth rejected Clarkson’s ruling. The state appealed Aarseth’s ruling to the Alaska Supreme Court, which on May 8 affirmed that the recall effort could go forward.

Electoral history