Theodore Fulton Stevens Sr. was an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. Senator from Alaska from 1968 to 2009. He was the longest-serving Republican Senator in history at the time he left office. Stevens was the president pro tempore of the United States Senate in the 108th and 109th Congresses from 2003 to 2007, and was the third U.S. Senator to hold the title of president pro tempore emeritus. He was previously Solicitor of the Interior Department from 1960 to 1961. Stevens has been described as one of the most powerful members of Congress and as the most powerful member of Congress from the Northwestern United States.
Walter Joseph Hickel was an American businessman, real estate developer, and politician who served as the second governor of Alaska from 1966 to 1969 and 1990 to 1994 and as U.S. Secretary of the Interior from 1969 to 1970. He worked as a construction worker and eventually became a construction company owner/operator during Alaska's territorial days. Following World War II, Hickel became heavily involved with real estate development, building residential subdivisions, shopping centers and hotels. Hickel entered politics in the 1950s during Alaska's battle for statehood and remained politically active for the rest of his life.
The Anchorage Times was a daily newspaper published in Anchorage, Alaska, that became known for the pro-business political stance of longtime publisher and editor, Robert Atwood. Competition from the McClatchy-owned Anchorage Daily News forced it out of business in 1992.
Benjamin Aavan Stevens was an American politician and political advisor who served as the Chief of Staff to the Governor of Alaska, Mike Dunleavy. He previously served as the President of the Alaska State Senate as a member of the Republican Party. Stevens was the son of the late United States Senator Ted Stevens, who represented Alaska from 1968 to 2009.
The Alaska political corruption probe refers to a 2003 to 2010 widespread investigation by the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service into political corruption of nine then-current or former Alaskan state lawmakers, as well as Republican US Representative Don Young and then-US Senator, Republican Ted Stevens. Sometimes referred to as "The Corrupt Bastards Club" or the "Operation Polar Pen", the investigation focused on the oil industry, fisheries and for-profit prison industries.
William James Allen was an American businessman who was the CEO of the Alaska oilfield services company VECO Corporation. VECO was an Alaska-based oil pipeline service and construction company founded by Wayne Veltri. Bill Allen was born in Socorro, New Mexico, and at the age of 16 left for the oil fields of Alaska to become a welder to help support his family. VECO began as a one-truck welding and repair operation that grew to become a major player in the Alaskan and worldwide oil industries' support services business. He built a for-profit prison in Barbados as well. VECO also was a worldwide player in the oil industry, having divisions in many major oil markets, including Sudan, Russia, Mexico, Venezuela, and Syria. VECO had a major impact on the economy of Alaska and employed over 5,000 people worldwide. Allen was later prosecuted for sexually assaulting minors, a crime he had been protected from prior after lying under oath during Ted Stevens's corruption trial, costing the Senator re-election in 2008.
Peter Kott is a former Republican state representative for District 17 serving Eagle River, Alaska, in the Alaska Legislature for seven terms, from 1993 until 2007. He was Speaker of the House during his sixth term in 2003–2004.
Thomas T. Anderson is a partner at Optima Public Relations in Anchorage, Alaska and also a radio talk show host of "Tom Anderson Show" (www.TomAndersonShow.com) on KVNT 92.5 FM and 1020 AM in Anchorage and Mat-Su Valley Alaska. Anderson is a former Alaska state representative for District 19 representing northeast Anchorage, Alaska. Anderson, a Republican, served in the Alaska Legislature for two terms, from 2003 until 2007, and became known for his sponsorship of legislation which expanded Alaska's DNA database to assist in forensic identification of criminal suspects through DNA testing.
Victor H. Kohring was an American politician who was a member of the Alaska House of Representatives.
The 2008 United States Senate election in Alaska was held on November 4, 2008. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator and former President pro tempore Ted Stevens ran for re-election for an eighth term in the United States Senate. It was one of the ten Senate races that U.S. Senator John Ensign of Nevada, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, predicted as being most competitive. The primaries were held on August 26, 2008. Stevens was challenged by Democratic candidate Mark Begich, the mayor of Anchorage and son of former U.S. Representative Nick Begich.
Although in its early years of statehood, Alaska was a Democratic state, since the early 1970s it has been characterized as Republican-leaning. Local political communities have often worked on issues related to land use development, fishing, tourism, and individual rights. Alaska Natives, while organized in and around their communities, have been active within the Native corporations. These have been given ownership over large tracts of land, which require stewardship. The state has an independence movement favoring a vote on secession from the United States, with the Alaskan Independence Party, but its membership has shrunk in recent decades.
John Joe Cowdery was a Republican member of the Alaska Senate, representing the O District from 2001 through 2008. He was previously a member of the Alaska House of Representatives from 1982 through 1984, and from 1997 through 2000.
Todd Mitchell Palin is an American businessman who was the first gentleman of Alaska from 2006 to 2009. He is the former husband of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee with John McCain.
The Alaska Public Safety Commissioner dismissal, also known as Troopergate, involves the possibly illegal July 2008 dismissal of the Alaskan Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan by Republican Governor Sarah Palin. A complaint alleged that Palin dismissed Monegan because he did not fire Alaskan State Trooper Mike Wooten, who was in a bitter divorce with Palin's sister, Molly McCann.
James Franklin Prewitt was an American attorney and government affairs consultant. He was a confidential source upon whom the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) relied to help prosecute "Operation Polar Pen," the Alaska political corruption probe that eventually ensnared United States Senator Ted Stevens. Prewitt was the author of Last Bridge to Nowhere, a creative non-fiction book that describes his involvement as an FBI source.
In 2006, Sarah Palin was elected governor of Alaska. Running on a clean-government platform, Palin defeated incumbent Governor Frank Murkowski in the Republican gubernatorial primary election in August. She then went on to win the general election in November, defeating former Governor Tony Knowles 48.3% to 40.9%. Her running mate was State Senator Sean Parnell.
Bruce Weyhrauch is an attorney in Juneau, Alaska, United States. He is also a former representative in the Alaska State House representing Juneau's District 4. Weyhrauch has practiced at his own law office in Juneau for nearly three decades. His regulatory and government affairs-focused practice handles a wide variety of matters, including labor relations and natural resources.
Beverly L. "Bev" Masek is an Alaska Native and an American former dog sled racer, and businesswoman. She was a Republican politician who served in the state legislature for several terms.
United States v. Senator Theodore F. Stevens was a criminal trial spanning from 2007 to 2009 of long-time U.S. Senator Ted Stevens as part of the Alaska political corruption probe. Stevens was the main source of coverage of the probe, being indicted by a jury on July 29, 2008 and convicted on 7 felony charges of corruption on October 27, 2008 which cost him re-election in the Senate race a week later.
