The Alaska Senate today voted unanimously to approve a resolution calling on Trump and the federal government to undo the renaming of the nation’s tallest mountain.
House Joint Resolution 4, which cleared the House last week, is a non-binding measure that supports maintaining the traditional Koyukon Athabaskan name of Denali for the iconic peak that Trump renamed through executive order.
The resolution was introduced by Fairbanks Democratic Rep. Maxine Dibert, who is Alaska Native, and argues that the name “Denali” represents a long cultural history that everyone in Alaska can be proud of.
“Residents of the state from all backgrounds and political persuasions embrace Denali as the rightful name for the tallest mountain in North America and take pride in the fact that people outside the state also recognize Denali as the mountain’s well-established name,” her resolution said, adding that “changing the name of the mountain from Denali to Mount McKinley would be costly and disrespectful to residents of the state, especially Alaska Native peoples.”
Unlike the vote in the House, where several conservative Republicans attempted to blunt the measure by loading it with praise for Trump on resource development, the Senate was unified on the issue and kept the measure clean and straightforward.
“There are some fights worth having; there are some that aren’t,” said Sen. Mike Shower, the Wasilla Republican who serves as Senate Minority Leader and whose district includes Denali. “If somebody back east in DC 3,000 miles away wants to throw the name McKinley somewhere here, there’s a lot of options, but Denali stands for something cultural that goes so far back in history. … I want to honor what the people of Alaska want.”
The measure is the first to clear both legislative chambers this session.
Matt Acuña Buxton is a long-time political reporter who has written for the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and The Midnight Sun political blog. He also authors the daily politics newsletter, The Alaska Memo, and can frequently be found live-tweeting public meetings on Bluesky.
