ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, who wanted to give homeless people one-way plane tickets out of Alaska’s largest city, lost his re-election bid.
Bronson on Thursday conceded this month’s runoff election to his opponent, Suzanne LaFrance.
“After a long and arduous campaign, today I called Suzanne LaFrance to congratulate her on becoming the next mayor of Anchorage and to wish her the best as she prepares to take on the responsibility of leading our great city,” said Bronson in a statement. .
He also pledged to ensure a smooth transition.
LaFrance, a former speaker of the Anchorage Assembly, claimed victory Tuesday, saying his lead was greater than any pending vote. The two went to a runoff when neither had more than 45% of the vote among the 10 candidates in the April 2 general election.
In the second round, LaFrance had 54% of the vote against Bronson’s 46%. The assembly will certify the election on May 31 and LaFrance will take office on July 1.
Bronson clashed with the assembly during his three years in office. The assembly opened several investigations into allegations of ethical violations and mismanagement.
Conservative Bronson, a registered Republican, has complained about the assembly’s “woke” policies, but his term has also been marked by clashes with assembly members over how to provide housing for the homeless after a record number of people have died. outdoors in winter 2022-2023.
Its unfunded plan to offer one-way plane tickets to homeless people did not come to fruition, and the city scrambled to open a large shelter before the onset of winter last October.
Another contentious issue in this year’s mayoral race was snow removal.
The city was deluged by snowstorms in November and many streets were clogged with stranded vehicles because the streets had not been plowed.
“We are a winter city, we know it will snow… and we need to plan for that. And I think that’s what’s so maddening,” LaFrance told the Anchorage Daily News at the time. “It doesn’t have to be so difficult.”
Another mayoral candidate, Democrat Chris Tuck, filmed himself plowing part of the street where Bronson lives in a pickup truck equipped with a blade.
LaFrance, who is registered as nonpartisan, campaigned to “restore competence” to City Hall.
LaFrance becomes the first woman elected mayor of Anchorage, but she is not the first to serve. Former assembly member Austin Quinn-Davidson became mayor in 2020 when then-mayor Ethan Berkowitz resigned following a sexting scandal. She did not run for election in 2021.
