AK-AL: On Thursday, Anchorage schools advocate Alyse Galvin announced that she would run in the August Democratic primary to challenge GOP Rep. Don Young, even though she identifies as an independent. Galvin is able to do this because last year, a judge sided with the state Democratic Party and ruled that independents may run in Democratic primaries, though the state is appealing the decision.
Galvin has led what the Anchorage Daily News' Nathaniel Herz describes as a "loosely knit advocacy group" called Great Alaska Schools that advocates for more school funding. While Galvin isn't a Democrat, she says the state party is "cooperating" with her on the campaign. Galvin's husband, Pat Galvin, is also an executive at an independent oil company and a life-long Democrat, so she may have some good political and financial connections. No other noteworthy candidates have announced bids for the Democratic nod.
Beating Young will certainly be a huge challenge. Young, who is now the longest serving-member of the House, has been good about getting federal money to a state that's very dependent on it, and he's usually won re-election by double digits. However, there are plenty of voters who have gotten tired of him after 45 years in office. In 2014, Young endangered his own re-election campaign after he appeared at an assembly at Wasilla High School and made some incredibly offensive comments about a local student's recent suicide. Young ended up beating his unheralded Democratic foe 51-41, a huge drop from his 64-29 win two years before.
Democrats were better prepared in 2016, and challenger Steve Lindbeck ran a commercial featuring a friend of the deceased student blasting Young's behavior. However, Young ended up winning 50-36, an almost identical margin to Trump's 51-37 victory over Clinton. Young announced in April he would seek yet another term.
One of Team Blue's big challenges has been that, while Young only took a bare majority in his last two contests, plenty of anti-Young votes have gone to independent candidates. And despite all his problems, Young's ability to secure needed appropriations has also given him a strong base of support in heavily Native American areas. For instance, while Hillary Clinton took 54 percent of the vote in state House District 40 in the rural northern edge of the state, Young won 59 percent there. Galvin will need a lot to go right if she wants to do what no one else has successfully done over the last several decades, but a good political climate and Young's unpredictability could make things interesting.