Amid the fray of the 2022 General Election, Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson quietly filed for reelection on Tuesday.
Bronson did not send out a press release or post about it on social media, and has not otherwise made the public aware of the filing.
To date, Bronson’s tenure as mayor has been marred by controversy, mistakes and an overall inability to address the city’s homelessness crisis.
Under Bronson’s leadership, the city’s bond rating was lowered, he asked security to leave a contentious public meeting and attempted to have the public video feed cut, he cut fluoridation of the municipal water supply, he suddenly shut down the homeless shelter at the Sullivan Arena and moved people to a campground devoid of services where they were attacked by bears, he then reopened the Sullivan because he was unable to come up with a long-term plan, and he illegally approved $5 million in work on a shelter without Assembly approval. The list goes on and on.
The list of vacant positions at the city continues to grow, while his administration has been a revolving door. In his first 16 months, Bronson has had four chiefs of staff, three budget directors, two municipal attorneys, two health directors, two police chiefs and three homelessness coordinators. Most notably, he failed to vet former Health Department Director Joe Gerace, who submitted a resume rife with fraud.
In his initial run for mayor, Bronson’s campaign routinely missed campaign finance reporting deadlines, filed incomplete and confusing reports, and omitted large contributions in its reporting. It was fined $38,500 – the maximum fine possible – for the repeated violations.
The next mayoral election is scheduled to be held April 2, 2024. By filing for reelection now, Bronson has more than 500 days to raise money and mount a campaign. So far, no one has filed to challenge him.
