Republican governor candidate Mike Dunleavy, left, and Democratic governor candidate Mark Begich, right, faced each other in their first head-to-head debate just 90 minutes after incumbent independent Gov. Bill Walker announced he was suspending his campaign. (Composite image)                                Republican governor candidate Mike Dunleavy, left, and Democratic governor candidate Mark Begich, right, faced each other in their first head-to-head debate just 90 minutes after incumbent independent Gov. Bill Walker announced he was suspending his campaign. (Composite image)

Republican governor candidate Mike Dunleavy, left, and Democratic governor candidate Mark Begich, right, faced each other in their first head-to-head debate just 90 minutes after incumbent independent Gov. Bill Walker announced he was suspending his campaign. (Composite image) Republican governor candidate Mike Dunleavy, left, and Democratic governor candidate Mark Begich, right, faced each other in their first head-to-head debate just 90 minutes after incumbent independent Gov. Bill Walker announced he was suspending his campaign. (Composite image)

Begich, Dunleavy meet in first head-to-head debate

Democrat, Republican agree on keeping rural school minimum sizes but differ on health care

Ninety minutes after incumbent independent Gov. Bill Walker announced his withdrawal from the 2018 general election, Democratic candidate Mark Begich and Republican Mike Dunleavy faced each other in the first head-to-head debate of their campaign.

Begich praised Walker’s decision. Dunleavy didn’t say the incumbent’s name. Both agreed that the result of the race will affect the course of Alaska for decades.

“That’s what this campaign is going to be about: What’s Alaska going to look like in the future?” Dunleavy said, shortly after moderators at the Alaska Federation of Natives debate wheeled a third chair off the stage.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

At the Friday afternoon event, the two candidates most sharply differed on health care issues. Dunleavy said he believes Medicaid providers are being overpaid and that the state should “look at some private approaches, some market approaches” for delivering health care in Alaska.

Begich, who cast a key vote in favor of the Affordable Care Act as a member of the U.S. Senate, said he believes the Medicaid system delivers results but is burdened by paperwork. He suggested efficiencies are the answer and suggested that if doctors, clinics and hospitals sign agreements to treat Medicaid patients, the state could eliminate some of the paperwork currently involved in treatment.

Begich garnered the lion’s share of applause during the debate, which took place at the Dena’ina Center during the annual AFN conference. Fewer than two hours before, Walker strongly endorsed Begich as his preferred candidate.

“Alaskans deserve a choice other than Mike Dunleavy,” Walker said.

Opening his remarks, Begich called Walker’s withdrawal an “amazing, courageous action.”

Dunleavy reminded debate spectators that his wife is Alaska Native and that he lived in rural Alaska as a teacher and administrator for years before moving to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.

Begich and Dunleavy each said they do not support increasing the minimum enrollment needed for schools to receive state support. The loss of state support usually results in a school closure, and many village schools have struggled to meet the minimum.

Dunleavy said that “there is a narrative that I want to close down rural schools.”

That’s not true, he said, explaining that he would like to see an expansion of high schools in hub communities such as Bethel, Kotzebue and Utqiagvik in order to provide a wider variety of classes.

The two candidates also agreed that they would not reappropriate money from the state’s Power-Cost Equalization fund to balance the state budget. Dunleavy in 2017 had proposed using PCE money, normally used to subsidize rural energy prices, to help balance the state deficit. The deficit is much smaller today.

Both candidates acknowledged that Walker’s departure changes the scope of the race with little time remaining before Election Day.

“We have just a few weeks, two and a half, and every vote matters,” Begich said.

Dunleavy added, “There is only 18 days left, so don’t be surprised if there’s more surprises along the way.”

Libertarian candidate Billy Toien is also on the ballot but did not appear at the debate.


• Contact reporter James Brooks at jbrooks@juneauempire.com or 523-2258.


More in Home2

Ephraim Froelich, a Juneau resident, testifies in support of House Bill 69 on Jan. 29, 2025. His son, who attends first grade in the Juneau School District, sits beside him. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: Alaskans need to choose between unchecked school funding or improved student achievement

The calls for boosting education funding by increasing Alaska’s Base Student Allocation… Continue reading

Little beetles crawl over a skunk cabbage inflorescence. (Photo by Mary F. Willson)
On The Trails: Beetle-mania

By Mary F. Willson

Eric Antrim inspecting bridges near Kake in 2023. (Courtesy photo)
My Turn: In response to the mass firings of Forest Service and other federal workers

I am Eric Antrim, a proud member and the elected Recording Secretary… Continue reading

(Juneau Empire File)
Community calendar of upcoming events

This is a calendar updated daily of upcoming local events during the… Continue reading

Jane Hale smiles for a photo as the wind blows a newly raised LGBTQ+ flag at the Hurff A. Saunders Federal Building downtown in June of 2023. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)
My Turn: Juneau’s transgender community and the church

I think of religion the way I think of marriage: a great… Continue reading

Cooked Chinese-style fried rice. (Photo by Patty Schied)
Cooking for Pleasure: Chinese-style fried rice

At most of the Chinese restaurants I’ve eaten at over the years,… Continue reading

Viewed from a certain angle, a lake on Heintzleman ridge appears to be in a Valentine’s Day mood. (Klas Stolpe)
Pure Sole: A first love

An old, old, old, old, old (key word is old here), old… Continue reading

This painting, “Abandonment of the Whalers in The Arctic Ocean September 1871,” depicts the New England whaling ships trapped in pack ice off northern Alaska. Wainwright Inlet is in the background. (Photo courtesy Ted and Ellie Congdon, Huntington Library)
Alaska Science Forum: When the Civil War came to Alaska

About 150 years ago, a few days after summer solstice, the gray… Continue reading

The Constitution of Alaska on display in the Seattle University School of Law library in January 2023. (Creative Commons photo)
My Turn: Actions in D.C. means Alaskans need to demand rights in state’s Constitution

The Constitution of Alaska is a masterpiece of careful thought and straightforward… Continue reading

Most Read