Press releases & official statements

Alaska Accountability Project plays major role in Lt. Gov Dahlstrom reversal

Media contact: Joel Borgquist, Executive Director | Phone: 808-892-9813 | Email: info@akproject.org

Anchorage, Alaska — September 5, 2026 — Alaska Accountability Project (AK Project) did the hard work behind the scenes to expose a broken system fraught with failures.

This is a critical step for balanced and fair elections. Candidates deserve equal scrutiny and a consistent process under the law. Our state government owes that to the public. Failures by the Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) to review financial disclosures and assess eligibility at the time of filing have put the Lt. Governor in an extraordinary position — unilaterally deciding the available general election ballot options for voters after a primary election has already taken place.

Since January of this year, AK Project has been researching candidate and campaign disclosures and responding to information and concerns provided by the public. It was clear from the start that significant discrepancies existed in numerous filings by candidates at all ends of the ballot.

After candidates were recommended for disqualification by APOC, AK Project jumped into action for the sake of fairness to immediately provide all available verified information regarding candidates in those races, exposing APOC's failures to adequately and fairly review all disclosures in an open and timely manner. Research also exposes deeply confusing and contradictory APOC policies and procedures that subject candidates to numerous opportunities to make innocent mistakes — and even misleads candidates into believing that they meet the standard.

Yesterday was just the first step. AK Project still has numerous documents and leads that suggest many more significant discrepancies in disclosures; from candidates' unlisted personal investments to unreported donations and expenditures. AK Project will continue its work to fairly release the information it finds on all candidates and to highlight the inadequacies of APOC's process — and its complete failure to act fairly and in the public interest.

AK Project calls on the Governor and the state legislature to take immediate action to fix our broken system, meanwhile applauding the Lt. Governor's commitment to ensure all candidates are given equal treatment.

AK Project thanks all of the many volunteers who make AK Project's work possible. It was a significant team effort spanning many months with countless hours spent on research and fact finding — and it has already shown significant results to protect Alaska's elections.

“This is a critical time for Alaska's elections. The public deserve a process they can trust.”

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