Gov. Mike Dunleavy poised to fill 2 Alaska state Senate seats after resignations tied to campaigns

Iris Samuels, Anchorage Daily News, Alaska on Nov 13, 2025

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Palmer Republican Sen. Shelley Hughes said Thursday that she is resigning from the Alaska Legislature later this week to focus on her gubernatorial run.

In doing so, Hughes became the second Republican senator from the Matanuska-Susitna Borough to resign from their seat this month, following Sen. Mike Shower of Wasilla, Alaska, who resigned to focus on his run for lieutenant governor alongside gubernatorial candidate Bernadette Wilson.

Both Hughes and Shower served in the all-Republican Senate minority caucus. The chamber is controlled by a bipartisan caucus of moderate Republicans and Democrats.

With just under a year until the 2026 election, 14 candidates have filed to run for Alaska's governor seat, including 12 Republicans and two Democrats. Current Gov. Mike Dunleavy is termed out from seeking reelection.

Under state law, Hughes and Shower will be replaced by Dunleavy within 30 days of their resignation from a slate of candidates submitted by the Alaska GOP. Republican Senate members will then vote on whether to confirm the governor's appointments.

Following Shower's resignation, the Alaska GOP posted a notice soliciting applications to fill his seat. According to the notice, the slate of candidates the party will forward to the governor will be chosen in a closed-door meeting Friday by party members from Shower's district.

The two House members who overlap with Shower's Senate district are Rep. George Rauscher of Sutton and Rep. Kevin McCabe of Big Lake. Both have submitted their names for consideration, along with four other candidates, McCabe said Thursday.

The two House members who overlap with Hughes' Senate district are Rep. Cathy Tilton of Wasilla and Rep. DeLena Johnson of Palmer. Tilton said Thursday that she is "definitely interested" in Hughes' Senate seat.

Rauscher and Johnson did not immediately respond to calls from the Daily News.

If Hughes or Shower are replaced in the Senate by sitting House members, Dunleavy will have the opportunity to fill any House vacancy within a 30-day window.

The vacancies are set to be filled before the beginning of the next regular legislative session, which starts in mid-January.

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