Wrangell voices heard in Dunleavy recall effort

Setting up a booth behind Rayme's Bar on Sunday and Monday, Wrangell resident Maleah Wenzel spent her Labor Day weekend taking signatures for the ongoing recall effort against Governor Mike Dunleavy. The governor, like many other people and issues in American politics, has become a source of division in recent months. According to a July 26 memorandum, the recall movement has several reasons they want to see Dunleavy removed from office. Among their claims are Dunleavy violating state law by refusing to appoint a judge to the Palmer Superior Court within 45 days of receiving nominations, misusing state funds, improperly using his line-item veto power, and incompetence when he "mistakenly vetoed" $18 million more from the state budget than he told legislators in official communications.

"What we cannot afford is for Governor Dunleavy to remain in office," Joseph Usibelli and Peggy Shumaker, co-chairs of the recall movement, wrote in an open letter. "His brief time as governor has brought us an atmosphere of fear and distress, as people worry about whether they will be able to care for special-needs children or whether they will lose their jobs, their homes, and their ability to live in Alaska."

Wenzel said that she wanted to volunteer with the recall effort because she believes that living in Wrangell should not mean being off the political map. Wrangell deserves a voice and an opportunity to sign this petition just as much as any other Alaskan community, she said.

"I also want people in this town to feel invested in this effort, whether they support it or not," she said. "I want people to realize that this is something that is real, that's on the line, that affects Wrangell."

Wenzel's participation in the recall effort drew strong reactions from people on social media, both positive and negative. Over the two days she manned her booth, she said that she gathered 73 signatures. With 723 registered voters in the last election, she said in an email to the Sentinel, that represents roughly 10 percent of all registered voters in the borough.

According to the Recall Dunleavy website, as of Sept. 3 there have been 36,731 signatures collected across the state. These signatures, for Phase One of the recall process, are planned to be submitted to the Division of Elections on Sept. 5. There are three phases to the recall process, according to their website. Upon success at the state superior court with the first phase, Phase Two will require the collection of 71,252 signatures of registered Alaskan voters. Should this phase prove to be successful, as well, the Division of Elections will announce a special election. In the event that Dunleavy is recalled, Lt. Governor Kevin Meyer will succeed him for the remainder of his term. To learn more about the recall movement, visit http://www.recalldunleavy.org.