5th Alaska State Legislature

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The Fifth Alaska State Legislature served from January 23, 1967, to January 26, 1969.

Contents

The Alaska Legislature had largely been controlled by the Democratic Party since statehood took effect in 1959, as was the case with most territorial legislatures stretching as far back as the early 1930s. In the 1966 elections, Alaska followed the rest of the nation and voted Republican: incumbent governor William A. Egan and incumbent U.S. Representative Ralph J. Rivers both lost reelection to Republican challengers (Walter J. Hickel and Howard W. Pollock, respectively). Republicans also wound up with control of both houses of the legislature, though many of the Republicans newly elected in 1966 only served in this legislature.

This Senate saw major changes in its composition. In response to the "one man, one vote" decision of the United States Supreme Court in Reynolds v. Sims , the area-based apportionment scheme established for the Senate in the state constitution was abandoned, and the Senate was apportioned strictly on a population basis like the House. Jay Hammond, who served in the House in the first three legislatures before returning home to Naknek to serve as manager of the Bristol Bay Borough, was newly elected as a senator from a district which stretched as far north as Bettles and as far south as the Alaska Peninsula. In the 1966 election, Hammond defeated Democratic incumbent Grant Pearson, who lived in Nenana, 480 miles (770 km) from Naknek. Under population-based apportionment, many future legislative districts in rural Alaska would also cover vast amounts of the state.

Senate

Senate members

DistrictNamePartyLocation
A Robert H. Ziegler, Sr. Dem Ketchikan
B Howard C. Bradshaw Dem Sitka
C Elton E. Engstrom, Jr. Rep Juneau
D Jan M. Koslosky Rep Palmer
E Nicholas J. Begich Dem Anchorage
Carl F. Brady RepAnchorage
Frank W. Harris RepAnchorage
Clyde R. Lewis RepAnchorage
Brad Phillips RepAnchorage
Vance Phillips RepAnchorage
Lowell Thomas, Jr. Rep Spenard [1]
F Walter I. "Bob" Palmer Rep Ninilchik
G Bill M. Poland Dem Kodiak
H Jay S. Hammond Rep Naknek
I John Butrovich, Jr. Rep Fairbanks
Paul B. Haggland RepFairbanks
V. Maurice Smith RepFairbanks
William I. Waugaman RepFairbanks
J Robert R. Blodgett Dem Teller
K Raymond C. Christiansen Dem Bethel

Senate leadership

Senate committee assignments

House

The House in 1968. 5TH ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE.jpg
The House in 1968.

House members

DistrictNamePartyLocation
1 William K. Boardman Republican Ketchikan
Edwin J. "Pete" Cessnun RepublicanKetchikan
2 Ernest J. Haugen Republican Petersburg
3 Frank Getman Democratic Sitka
4 Mildred H. Banfield Republican Juneau
Bill Ray DemocraticJuneau
5 Frank See Democratic Hoonah
6 R. R. Borer Republican Cordova
7 Jalmar M. Kerttula Democratic Palmer
8 Michael F. Beirne Republican Anchorage
Ken Brady RepublicanAnchorage
Tom Fink RepublicanAnchorage
Milo H. Fritz RepublicanAnchorage
Gene Guess DemocraticAnchorage
Jess Harris RepublicanAnchorage
Mortimer M. Moore RepublicanAnchorage
William J. Moran DemocraticAnchorage
Charles J. Sassara, Jr. DemocraticAnchorage
Jack R. Simpson RepublicanAnchorage
Don Smith RepublicanAnchorage
Ted Stevens [2] RepublicanAnchorage
Harold D. Strandberg RepublicanAnchorage
William C. Wiggins RepublicanAnchorage
9 Irwin L. Metcalf Democratic Seward
10 Clem V. Tillion Republican Halibut Cove
11 Charles A. Powell Republican Kodiak
12 Carl E. Moses Republican Unalaska
13 Joseph E. McGill Democratic Dillingham
14 George H. Hohman, Jr. Democratic Bethel
15 John C. Sackett Republican Fairbanks
16 Tury F. Anderson RepublicanFairbanks
Mike Bradner DemocraticFairbanks
John Holm RepublicanFairbanks
Terry Miller Republican North Pole
Edmund N. Orbeck DemocraticFairbanks
Jules Wright RepublicanFairbanks
Donald E. Young Republican Fort Yukon
17 Willie Hensley Democratic Kotzebue
18 Thomas J. Balone Democratic Nome
19 John L. Westdahl
(1-23-67 – 2-18-68) [3]
Democratic St. Mary's
Vacant
(2-18-68 – 2-26-68)
Moses Paukan
(2-26-68 – 1-26-69) [4]
DemocraticSt. Mary's

House leadership

House committee assignments

See also

Related Research Articles

References

General
Specific and Notes
  1. Roster of Members simply lists Spenard, currently a neighborhood of Anchorage but often regarded at the time as a separate community. Alaska Local Government, on the other hand, lists a residence address which at the time was mostly rural outskirts of Anchorage, on the opposite side of Anchorage International Airport from the southwestern end of Spenard.
  2. 1 2 Resigned near the expiration of his term, to accept appointment to the United States Senate following the death of Bob Bartlett.
  3. Died in office.
  4. Appointed to replace Westdahl, his brother-in-law.