Former Anchorage Assembly chair turned mayoral candidate Suzanne LaFrance added two more notable endorsements to her roster this week, with the Anchorage Police Department Employees Association PAC and the Anchorage Firefighters Union 1264 both deciding to back her campaign for mayor.
“I believe the number one job of local government is to keep our community safe,” LaFrance told the Current. “I look forward to partnering with our dedicated police and fire professionals to make sure Anchorage is a safe place to call home for everyone that lives here.”
LaFrance is running against the incumbent mayor, Dave Bronson, who has grown increasingly unpopular over his term, earning a scant 29% favorable rating in a poll conducted by Patinkin Research Strategies in October 2023, as well as former Anchorage Democrat Rep. Chris Tuck and the former head of the Anchorage Economic Development Corp., Bill Popp.
Bronson is underwater with voters, with his first mayoral term marked by lawsuits, incompetence and cronyism.
“Public safety is top of the list for voters … police and fire are the most important endorsements in a municipal race,” political strategist Jim Lottsfeldt told the Current. “These endorsements are really narrowing the path for other candidates to be considered a viable challenger to Mayor Bronson.”
LaFrance’s latest police and fire endorsements come on top of a growing list, including endorsements by the Anchorage Central Labor Council, the local arm of the AFL-CIO, which represents some 15,000 municipal workers, the ASEA/AFSCME Local 52 PAC, which represents more than ,8000 state and municipal employees, The Alaska Center, and several other labor unions and nonprofit organizations.
“Suzanne is gathering up all the institutional support … At some point the other candidates are going to have to look into the mirror and ask themselves if they want to move forward in the race,” Jim Lottsfeldt said. “She is the alternative to Mayor Bronson.”
Bronson’s campaign page does not currently list any endorsements, while Tuck’s campaign page shows a diverse list of individuals, from State Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson to Republican Nicholas Begich, but no organizations. Neither candidate has responded to an inquiry from the Current at the time of publishing.
Bill Popp, who entered the race in September, told the Current in an email that he has also received the coveted police endorsement from ADPEA PAC in a dual endorsement with LaFrance, and his campaign is currently seeking others.
