On June 1, 2026, former Alaska Gov. Bill Walker (I) filed to run for governor, an office he left in 2018. Walker previously ran for governor in 2022, coming in third place, receiving 21% of the vote behind Les Gara’s (D) 24% and incumbent Mike Dunleavy’s (R) 50%.

Walker is not the first former governor to run again. In research dating back to 1960, Ballotpedia found at least 135 instances in which 102 governors ran for non-consecutive terms, with some governors running more than once. In Alaska, the state has the second-highest number of candidacies with 10 instances across nine elections. The earliest recorded instance was in 1962 when former territorial governor Mike Stepovich (R) ran for governor of the state, but was defeated by William Egan (D). In 1974, two former governors ran against each other.

The governor who ran most frequently in Alaska was Wally Hickel, who ran four times, three times as a Republican, and once as a member of the Alaska Independence Party. In 1974, Hickel lost the Republican primary. In 1978, Hickel lost both the Republican primary and the general as a write-in candidate. In 1986, he lost the Republican primary again. In 1990, as a third-party candidate, Hickel won. He did so 21 years after leaving the office in 1969. Walker is the only other Alaska governor to run more than once, running in 2022 and 2026.

Of all governors nationally, Former governors ran again on average about eight years after leaving office. In Alaska, the average is roughly the same, with the average governor running 7.9 years after leaving office. Hickel has the longest gap between leaving office and running, at 21 years. The shortest was Mike Stepovich, who ran 3 years after leaving office in 1959. 

Nationally, the longest gap between leaving office and running again was Harold Stassen (R-Min.), who ran for governor of Minnesota in 1982, 39 years after leaving office. The former governor to run a successful campaign after the longest time was Cecil Underwood (R-W.Va.), who won in 1996, 35 years after leaving office, and after three previously failed bids.

In Alaska, only two former governors have won bids for their former office: Bill Egan (D) in 1970 and Wally Hickel (Alaska Independence) in 1990. The most common outcome was a loss, as in three instances each, a governor lost either the primary or the general election. In one election, the governor lost the primary, then the general election as a write-in candidate. Walker’s election hasn’t happened yet, and will be determined in November.

In addition to Walker, former Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer (R) announced a campaign in 2025, but ultimately did not file to run.

To read more about gubernatorial elections in 2026, click here. To read more about Alaska’s gubernatorial election, click here.