Alaska Oil Money: Final Week Donations Hit Governor Race

The owner of Hilcorp Energy gave $10,000 to Republican gubernatorial candidate Bernadette Wilson on Friday. This contribution arrived just days before Alaskans head to the polls on Tuesday. It marks the first financial support from Hilcorp founder and chairman Jeffery Hildebrand to any candidate in the 2026 state election cycle.

The donation adds to Wilson’s total of nearly $85,000 raised during the final week of campaigning. In contrast, the race’s sole Democrat, Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins, collected more than $400,000 in the same timeframe. This sum far exceeds the combined totals of his three Republican opponents. The fundraising disparity reflects Kreiss-Tomkins’ lead in political endorsements following his first-place finish in the August primary.

Kreiss-Tomkins secured 22.5% of the vote in a crowded August primary that featured 17 candidates. He now holds a substantial advantage in resources compared to his rivals. The other Republican candidates on the ballot are former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson and former Attorney General Treg Taylor. Bronson raised roughly $500 in the final week, while Taylor did not report any new contributions.

The candidates’ fundraising comes amid a sharp disagreement over state tax policy. All three Republican candidates have opposed changing Alaska’s tax structure. They specifically rejected a proposal to apply the state corporate income tax to oil and gas companies that currently avoid the levy. Kreiss-Tomkins supports such revenue measures, arguing they are necessary to balance the state’s structural deficit and reduce reliance on fluctuating oil prices.

Hilcorp has long resisted closing what it calls the S-corp loophole. A 2025 fiscal impact analysis estimated that a bill imposing corporate income taxes on entities like Hilcorp would have generated $186 million for the state in fiscal year 2026. The company argued that new taxes would threaten the financial feasibility of the Alaska LNG project and impact valuable oil and gas production in the Cook Inlet and Railbelt regions.

The tax debate intensified during three special legislative sessions this summer. Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy, who is term-limited, criticized the inclusion of corporate income tax provisions in proposed tax cut packages for the LNG megaproject. Hilcorp stated that the project would face a critical natural gas shortage without stable production, making the company a key supplier for the pipeline.

Glenfarne Group CEO Brendan Duval also made donations last week. He gave $5,000 each to Wilson and Kreiss-Tomkins. Glenfarne officials told the Anchorage Daily News editorial board in September that they were meeting with all four candidates to discuss the project’s status. Becky Windt Pearson, Glenfarne’s head of Alaska legal and corporate affairs, stated that the company views itself as a partner to the state regardless of which candidate wins.

Early voting is currently underway across the state. More than 90,000 Alaskans have already cast their ballots. The final results will determine the next governor and shape the state’s approach to energy taxation and infrastructure development in the coming years.