| Nick Begich’s failure to protect Alaskan jobs is weighing on the state’s economy.
New reporting shows that because of Begich and the administration’s targeting of federal jobs through reckless DOGE efforts, Alaska falls “among the states that lost the largest share of its federal workforce,” losing 10.5% of federal jobs throughout critical industries like the U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The cuts also threaten military bases, veterans hospitals, national forests, commercial fishing, subsistence management and public safety across the state.
Meanwhile, Begich was a proud member of the DOGE Caucus, and repeatedly praised its work, claiming “Americans want DOGE.”
Federal jobs play “an outsized role in Alaska’s economy,” meaning that Alaskans are now suffering from a “disproportionate economic impact,” from Begich’s betrayal.
DCCC Spokesperson Anna Elsasser:
“Instead of advocating for Alaskans’ jobs, Nick Begich was one of the lead architects for mass layoffs that are now devastating Alaska’s economy. Voters will remember who sold out their livelihoods come November.”
Read more:
Anchorage Daily News: Alaska lost federal jobs at one of the highest rates among states in 2025, report finds
- Alaska was among the states that lost the largest share of its federal workforce in the first year of the current Trump administration, according to a new report from the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
- By the fourth quarter of 2025, Alaska’s federal civilian workforce had fallen from 15,374 jobs a year earlier to 13,767, a loss of 1,607 jobs, or 10.5%, according to a recent Alaska Economic Trends report.
- Economists say a steep decline in federal jobs in Alaska during the last few months of 2025 show a clear picture of the extent of DOGE’s cuts after workers who took deferred resignation offers were removed from the federal government’s payrolls.
- Based on the annual average, Alaska lost 4.5% of its civilian federal jobs in 2025 — nearly 700 positions — compared with 2024, ranking third nationally…
- The average annual figure of 698 jobs lost in Alaska, however, understates how steep the workforce reductions had become by year’s end.
- The report found the more than 1,600 job losses by the end of 2025 were spread across nearly every major federal department.
- Local officials have warned that because federal employment is concentrated in many smaller communities and supports such a broad range of industries, Alaska could feel a disproportionate economic impact from workforce reductions compared with many other states.
- …The changes threatened long-running fisheries surveys, wildlife monitoring, weather and ocean observing programs, and other scientific work that contextualizes commercial fishing, subsistence management and public safety issues across the state.
- Federal employment plays an outsized role in Alaska’s economy compared to other states… Federal jobs generally pay higher-than-average wages and are spread throughout the state, from military bases and veterans hospitals to national forests and fisheries management offices.
- The job cuts amounted to $36.5 million in lost federal wages in 2025, according to the report.
- “When we lose federal jobs, we are losing jobs held by Alaskans that pay fairly well,” Wiebold said. “When those jobs go away, we feel that in our economy.”
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