Don't look now, but there are candidates all over the place

Frontiersman editorial board

They make a lot of annoying noise. Soon they'll infest every neighborhood, showing up on porches, on lawns, at the parks, churches and at every community gathering. There are way more of them this year than recent memory can recall. No, it's not the Midwest's cicada invasion; it's the bumper crop of Mat-Su candidates for this year's elections.

Nearly every seat will be contested for the first time in many years, and there will actually be Democrats to choose from during the primary election -- six of them running for five seats. The last time there were six out-of-the-closet Democrats in the Valley at one time, the National Guard was called in.

What does it all mean?

It's likely that the number of candidates will continue to grow as the population in the Valley grows. An upward trend in candidates shouldn't surprise anybody. Still, this year doesn't appear to fall on a gentle upward slope. This appears to be a spike year, and it's got people talking about a possible wholesale changing of the guard in a community where stability and predictability have been the political standards for years. We're a conservative community. This is Republican country … Aren't we? Isn't it?

Just as we can expect a quantitative change in candidacies, we should also expect growth in the variety of candidate views. Much of the Valley's growth is driven by families fleeing Anchorage. It's no secret that Anchorage has a deeper liberal base than the Valley has had recently, so we can expect some growth on the left. The people moving in from Anchorage are also bringing Anchorage experiences with them. They've been squeezed, cramped and pushed out of Anchorage, and they're looking for something more rural -- someplace where growth is not a bad memory -- but is still a possibility, and an opportunity to get it right. It's likely those attitudes will change the political landscape here, as well as the physical landscape. For that reason, voters can expect to hear ideas from candidates that haven't been expressed here in a long time.

Lastly, it's been a tough year for politicians in Alaska. There's been a panic over budget woes, conflict-of-interest has tainted state and local political wells, and there's a perception of promises broken at nearly every level. Part of the candidate bumper crop is likely just a sign that Mat-Su voters are ready for a change. Even incumbents who retain their seats this time should remember the message. If they are fortunate enough not to change occupations, they should at least change their approach to the people's business.