By Jonas Blank
Congressional Quarterly

Electoral votes: 3

Delegates: 19

Chairman: Cindy Spanyers

Hotel: Hollywood Roosevelt (323) 466-7000

1996 Election:
Dole – 51%
Clinton – 33%
Perot – 11%

With their reputation for an independent, frontier mentality, Alaskans' suspicion of government has made the state a Republican stronghold in presidential politics. Only one Democrat, Lyndon B. Johnson in his 1964 landslide, has ever won Alaska's electoral votes.

"It's part of the mythology of Alaska. People see themselves as able to handle their own affairs, take care of themselves," said Willie Anderson, one of the state's 19 delegates to this year's Democratic convention in Los Angeles.

Though they acknowledge that winning the state would be an uphill struggle for their candidate, Vice President Al Gore, members of the Alaska delegation hope to show their enthusiasm at the convention.

However, that enthusiasm is tempered by concern over the Clinton-Gore administration's conservationist stand on environmental issues and natural resource development - which many Alaskans of both major parties argue has hindered the state's economy.

State Democratic Party Chairman Chris Cooke said, "We are loyal to the party; we agree with the progressive goals of the party." But he added, "We're not in 100 percent agreement with the party on all the national issues."

One especially contentious issue is the opening of the remote Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for oil drilling, long sought by many Alaska officials. "Gore's position is at variance with the desires of most Alaskans, including the state party, to see development there," said Cooke.

As a result, the delegation is bringing three uncommitted delegates and one uncommitted alternate, in hopes of signaling some dissatisfaction with Gore and possibly raising the profile of Alaska issues.

But Gore suits those Alaska Democrats whose views hew more closely to the national party line. "I consider myself liberal and I don't feel abandoned. Winning [the election] is more important at this point in time," said Anderson.

The state's Republican tilt has given that party an unshakable hold on the three seats in its congressional delegation and nearly two-thirds of the seats in the state legislature.

But Democrat Tony Knowles, a former Anchorage mayor with moderate to conservative views on many issues, is in the middle of his second term as governor. Knowles is a delegate to the Democratic National Convention.

State party Vice Chairwoman Cindy Spanyers is heading the delegation. While all Democratic delegations have striven for gender equality and a racial mix, Spanyers said the Alaska contingent also is notable for its economic diversity.

While it includes some members of the party elite and political pros such as Knowles and Cooke, "Most of our delegates are not well-heeled," Spanyers said, noting that several delegates are unemployed and many come from working-class backgrounds.

ALASKA NOTABLES: Gov. Tony Knowles; state Democratic Party Chairman Chris Cooke; state Democratic Party Vice Chairwoman Cindy Spanyers, the delegation chairman; Democratic National Committee members Rich Listowski and Cheryl Davis; state Senate Minority Leader Johnny Ellis.