State Sen. Elvi Gray-Jackson has suspended her U.S. Senate campaign and instead announced plans on Friday to run for reelection to her current seat in the state Legislature.
Gray-Jackson says it would have been monumentally expensive to run for the U.S. Senate. And she called for campaign finance reform.
What her district will look like is still up in the air, though, as a state Supreme Court ruling last week could lead to a series of changes to state Senate districts.
The board may have to decide how many Senate districts it wants to rearrange after the state’s high court found that a pairing of most of Eagle River with the South Muldoon neighborhood violated the state constitution. At least four Senate districts will have to be rearranged if Eagle River and Muldoon are to have their own districts.
Both Gray-Jackson’s decision and the final Anchorage Senate map could affect which offices candidates seek this year. For example, Democratic Rep. Chris Tuck had been interested in running for the state Senate district that Gray-Jackson lives in. He must now decide whether to oppose her or to run for a different office.
