| Traveling over 20,000 miles by plane, ferry and all-terrain vehicle to meet voters across Alaska, small-town fisherman Bill Hill is going the extra mile to lower costs, take on Washington corruption, and put Alaskans first – and he’s gaining in momentum.
A new AP profile highlights Hill as “a working-class candidate who can relate to Alaskans’ frustrations with high fuel and other costs” who won’t be beholden to any “party boss,” and is fighting to ban congressional stock trading and end forever wars. Unlike multi-millionaire nepo baby Nick Begich, Hill is earning voters’ trust through his “integrity” and by being “authentic and a ‘really good dude.’”
DCCC Spokesperson Anna Elsasser:
“Bill Hill knows what hardworking Alaskans are going through because he lives it every day. While out-of-touch millionaire political heir Nick Begich is busy in Washington handing himself tax breaks, protecting the wealthy special interests driving up costs, and leaving Alaska families to foot the bill, Hill is traveling to every corner of the state to earn their trust. Alaskans are fed up with politicians who put billionaires and party bosses first, and Hill is building the momentum to defeat Begich, clean up Washington corruption, and finally put working Alaskans first.”
Read more:
AP: A small-town Alaska fisherman has Republicans on the defensive as they try to keep US House majority
- In the thick of Alaska’s primary election season this summer, independent Bill Hill took a break from his U.S. House campaign to return home to Bristol Bay.
- “I told my team that I have got to fish,” he said, adding: “Commercial fishing is the way that we pay the bills.”
- Hill…grew up in a tiny southwest Alaska village where he said his family had no phone and had to haul water from a nearby lake for cooking and bathing. Today, while he no longer has to fetch water, his lifestyle is not much different. He lives in a remote fishing community of about 430 people that he has called home for nearly half his life.
- A retired teacher and school administrator, Hill has positioned himself as a working-class candidate who can relate to Alaskans’ frustrations with high fuel and other costs. He has made affordability and pushing back against billionaires a central theme in his campaign against Republican Nick Begich…
- “We are pedal to the metal, making sure that every Alaskan knows about this campaign, every Alaskan knows what we stand for and every Alaskan knows that it’s really one of them going to Congress,” Hill told people at a campaign event this week in Juneau, wearing his standard campaign uniform of jeans, a zip-up vest and cap with a fishing company logo. “I need your help getting there.”
- The race has become a concern for Republicans as they are trying to hold onto their majority in the U.S. House. Vice President JD Vance held a rally this week for Begich…President Donald Trump is scheduled to do another in the coming week.
- Begich and Republican political action committees have ratcheted up ad spending in the House race since the primary.
- Hill, a first-time candidate who is Alaska Native, faces an incumbent from a prominent family long associated with the state’s politics…Nick Begich is a lifelong Republican and has aligned himself with Trump…
- Hill’s campaign said he has traveled more than 20,000 miles in the state, including by plane, ferry and all-terrain vehicle, to introduce himself to voters and promote his message.
- The contest has received national attention, with spending by groups that include the National Republican Congressional Committee and House Majority PAC, which seeks to flip the U.S. House to Democrats.
- In early August, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson…held a rally for Begich that was closed to reporters.
- Hill said the visits show Republicans are nervous.
- “I was not going to get into this race to waste people’s time, to waste people’s money,” he said. “I did my due diligence before jumping in to ensure that there was a path to victory.”
- Begich’s campaign did not respond to messages from The Associated Press.
- Hill… is a lifelong independent. He said he will not be beholden to a “party boss” or party line…
- He has said he is willing to work with anyone on what is best for Alaska. He also has called for bans on congressional stock trading and for limiting the influence of money in elections.
- Hill said he wants to help build coalitions, saying he “can be a big part of a small group that makes big changes.”
- Democrat Bill Brown came to the Juneau event planning to vote for Hill but wanting to talk with him directly. He said they aligned on numerous issues, including support for the environment, schools and ending “forever” wars.
- The retired economics professor said…he finds himself “most interested in the integrity of the candidate. Bill Hill convinced me on that issue.”
- Hill, who is Dena’ina Athabascan, said the top concerns he hears about from Alaskans are the price of fuel and overall cost of living. He said he had to fly home earlier this year and pump fuel oil from the textile manufacturing business he runs with his wife and bring it back to his house in a barrel because the community had run out.
- He said fuel prices jumped from about $6.70 per gallon to about $9 per gallon after a barge shipment to his town earlier this year. Prices also have been higher elsewhere, particularly in communities accessible only by air or water. On social media, Hill’s campaign calls out Begich for his support of the Iran war as it posts photos of fuel prices around the state.
- Steve Davis, a voter at Hill’s Juneau event this week, called him authentic and a “really good dude.” He said he was drawn to Hill in part because he wants to see Congress reclaim its oversight role. Hill drew applause during the gathering when he said Congress must reassert itself as a separate but equal branch of government.
- “We don’t need a unified executive, we don’t need kings,” Davis said. “We need a Congress that actually functions.”
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