The Alaskan Independence Party has appeared on the ballot in Alaska in all state elections, starting in 1970. In its early years, it never got involved in presidential elections. However, in 2004, for the first time, it nominated a presidential candidate. That candidate was Michael Peroutka, who was also the Constitution Party presidential candidate.
The Alaskan Independence Party expects to nominate for president again in 2008. According to the state chair, Lynette Clark, the party will either choose the nominee of the Constitution Party (who will not be chosen until April), or it will choose Frank McEnulty.
Frank McEnulty and Jim Clymer both spoke at the AIP state convention, held March 14-16. Clymer is the national chair of the Constitution Party.
McEnulty has been running for president since early 2007. He is 51 and lives in Long Beach, California. He started as an independent candidate. Then he won the presidential nomination of the New American Independent Party, a party that is not yet on the ballot in any state. The party chose McEnulty in a web based election conducted February 6-29. The results were announced on March 12. McEnulty had also run in the Arizona Republican presidential primary earlier this year, and had polled 333 votes. His web page is www.frankforpresident.org.
The Alaskan Independence Party has elected one governor, Walter Hickel, who was first elected governor as a Republican in 1966 and resigned in ’69 to become President Nixon’s interior secretary.
After losing several GOP primaries for governor, Hickel ran in 1990 at age 71 as the AIP nominee; he won with some 40%. In ’94, Hickel changed his registration back to Republican, and many thought he would seek re-election under that label, but he then announced that he would not run again.
The current Republican governor, Sarah Palin, sent a taped message to the recent AIP state meeting.