Who is Candice English and what is English running on in the 2026 Alaska Governor race?

Candice English is the Republican candidate for Alaska governor. Founder of Northern Solutions machine shop (Anchorage, Deadhorse), 20 years at ARCO Alaska on the North Slope. Was Treg Taylor’s running mate; took the top of the ticket after Taylor was disqualified for campaign-finance disclosure problems, with Jodi Taylor (his wife) as running mate. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.

The race

• The seat: Open seat (Mike Dunleavy (R) term-limited); top-four ballot, ranked-choice general.
• Rating: Cook and Sabato rate it favorable to Republicans (per Newsweek, ~Aug 30, 2026).
• Polling: First round: Kreiss-Tomkins 40, Wilson 20, Bronson 14, English/Taylor 7, 19% other/undecided (AARP, 800 LV, released Sept 22, 2026); Kreiss-Tomkins wins final RCV round by 10 over Wilson. co/efficient (Sept 17): Kreiss-Tomkins 43, Wilson 20, Bronson 17, English/Taylor 6.

Why English is behind

• Republican vote is split three ways (Wilson, Bronson, English) while Democrats consolidated after Tom Begich withdrew to back Kreiss-Tomkins.
• Kreiss-Tomkins leads first-round polls around 40 to 43% and wins the simulated RCV final round by 10 in the AARP poll.
• But Republicans together won ~49.5% of the primary vote, and the AARP pollster warned the undecided vote leans Republican, so second-choice transfers could favor Wilson.
• Voter dissatisfaction with term-limited Gov. Dunleavy and an aggressive, modern Kreiss-Tomkins campaign helped him to first place in the primary (22.5%).

What English is running on

English’s campaign has published little on specific policies so far. This page will be updated as positions are set out.

The other candidates

• Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins (D)
• Bernadette Wilson (R)
• Dave Bronson (R)

Every race

See every Senate and governor race on the ballot, with each candidate’s chance of winning: the 2026 midterms at a glance.