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Democratic gubernatorial candidate Les Gara, left, discusses hospitality industry issues during a forum Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022, with independent candidate Bill Walker, right, at Louie’s Douglas Inn. The forum was hosted by the Alaska Cabaret, Hotel, Restaurant and Retailers Association, with the organization’s president and CEO Sarah Oates acting as the moderator. (Mark Sabbatini/Juneau Empire)

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Walker, Gara get into a bar debate

Candidates for governor talk about serving, shortages and ships during industry forum in Juneau

Fat Bear Week bracket (Photo courtesy Katmai National Park & Preserve)

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Fat bears face off

Voters decide on the heftiest Katmai brown bear

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

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27 new deaths reported; COVID cases, hospitalizations down overall

For the period of Sept. 28 to Oct. 4, 554 new COVID-19 cases were reported

Melanie Hardin, right, greets the Alaska Permanent Fund Corp.’s Board of Trustees before her interview for the APFC’s executive director’s job Monday, Oct. 3, 2022, in Juneau, (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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Permanent Fund board picks new executive director

Trustees work overtime selecting from three candidates after interviews Monday

Rep. Mary Peltola, an Alaska Democrat, delivers a speech on the U.S. House floor before Thursday’s vote approving her first bill, establishing an Office of Food Security in the Department of Veterans Affairs. It passed the House by a 376-49 vote, although its fate in the Senate is undetermined. (Screenshot from official U.S. House video)

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Poll: Peltola’s a popular pol

Food for vets bill passes House, pollster says she is “the most popular figure in Alaska right now.”

A parking sign awaits the new executive director of the Alaska Permanent Fund at its Juneau headquarters, Three finalists will be interviewed for the job during a public meeting Monday by the fund’s board of trustees, who are expected to deliberate and announce the new director immediately afterward. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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Interviews, selection of new Permanent Fund CEO set for Monday

Three finalists seeking to manage $73.7B fund to appear before trustees at public meeting in Juneau

Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire The Alaska Permanent Fund Corp. building in Juneau is scheduled to be the site where the board of trustees will select a new executive director on Monday, following the investigation into the firing of former CEO Angela Rodell last December being presented to state lawmakers on Wednesday.

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Investigators: Permanent Fund CEO’s firing legal but departed from policy

Trustees acted legally, despite not following official policy, and governor didn’t influence decision

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

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COVID hospitalizations, cases down from last week

The state reported no new resident deaths from COVID-19 this week

Engineer Lake Cabin can be seen in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge on Nov. 21, 2021. The United States Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service announced Friday, Sept. 23, 2022, that $14.4 million of a larger $37 million package will be used to build cabins in the Chugach and Tongass National Forests. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Peninsula Clarion)

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Millions designated for cabins in Tongass, Chugach

$18 million is allocated to the construction and maintenance of cabins and historic buildings — of which $14.4…

An image purportedly from the computer screen of a digital media specialist for Gov. Mike Dunleavy shows numerous files and folders of campaign advertising. A complaint filed against the governor, plus other individuals and organizations, claims administrative staff is illegally doing paid campaign work on behalf of the governor. (Screenshot from complaint filed with the Alaska Public Offices Commission)

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Dunleavy faces more accusations in campaign complaint

Governor calls it “specious and unfounded.”

Alaska state Rep. David Eastman, a Wasilla Republican, is shown seated on the House floor on April 29, 2022, in Juneau, Alaska. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)

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Alaska judge keeps Oath Keepers lawmaker on November ballot

Judge Jack McKenna on Thursday ordered elections officials to delay certifying the result of that particular race

Damage from the remnants of typhoon Merbok can be seen in Golovin, Alaska, on Sept. 20, 2022. Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has requested a federal disaster declaration for areas in western Alaska affected by the storm. (Photo by Jeremy Cubas/Office of the Governor) Damage from the remnants of typhoon Merbok can be seen in Golovin, Alaska, on Sept. 20, 2022. Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has requested a federal disaster declaration for areas in western Alaska affected by the storm. (Photo by Jeremy Cubas/Office of the Governor)

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Repair work begins in some Alaska towns slammed by storm

About 21,000 people living along a 1,000-mile stretch of Alaska’s western coast were affected by the storm

Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire On Thursday morning at what police described as an active crime scene, JPD Officer Austin Thomas and Officer Taylor Davis walk the fielded area which was blocked off by crime scene tape. Multiple tents and a police vehicle sat in the field where the tape surrounded, another police vehicle sat in a dirt parking area.

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No arrests made as Juneau death investigation continues

Shortly before 4 p.m. Wednesday that a woman’s body was found

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

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Hospitalizations down; state to discontinue weekly COVID summaries

COVID-19 summary information will continue to be included in the Alaska COVID-19 and Influenza Weekly Case Update

AP Photo / Evan Vucci President Joe Biden speaks about student loan debt forgiveness in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022, in Washington. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona listens at right.

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White House estimates over 60K Alaskans to benefit from student loan forgiveness plan

The state adds a small portion to the estimated 40M borrowers eligible for relief across the country

Former Juneau Mayor Bruce Botelho displays a slide showing some of the arguments being made for voting in favor of a state constitutional convention in the November general election while explaining the reasons he opposes such a convention during a lecture Tuesday at the Walter Soboleff Building. He said voters have rejected a convention by large margins almost every time it has come up every ten years since statehood, but a current mood of higher political distrust in government nationwide means there appears to be a higher likelihood of passage this year. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)

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Presentation details cons of constitutional convention

Yes-vote rallies seek end to PFD “political football” as Southeast leaders warn of regional harm

Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire Kelsey Martin asks about the status of her son’s Permanent Fund Dividend check after arriving first at Juneau’s PFD office in the State Office Building on Tuesday, the first day direct deposit payments of the $3,284 dividends are being credited. Eligible residents who did not receive direct deposits will be paid by checks that will be mailed starting Oct. 6.

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$3,284 payments make their way to many residents

Others arrive at PFD office bright and early with questions.

In this image provided by the U.S. Coast Guard, an aerial view taken during a search and rescue and damage assessment in Deering, Alaska, shows the damage caused by Typhoon Merbok, on Sept. 18, 2022. Authorities are making contact with some of the most remote villages in the United States to determine the need for food and water and assess damage from a massive weekend storm that flooded communities dotting Alaska’s vast western coast. (Petty Officer 3rd Class Ian Gray/U.S. Coast Guard via AP)

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Damage assessments begin in flooded remote Alaska villages

No one has been reported injured or killed during the massive storm

Registered pharmacist Sapana Patel holds a bottle of Monkeypox vaccine at a Pop-Up Monkeypox vaccination site on Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, in West Hollywood, Calif. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File)

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State expands monkeypox vaccine eligibility

More than 450 first doses of the vaccine have been administered in Alaska as of Monday

Rep. Mary Peltola is followed by her staff and members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Monday, a day before she was sworn in after winning Alaska’s special election in August. As as result of her win she has since far outraised the two Republican challengers she will again face in the November general election. (AP Photo/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades)

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Peltola nets huge financial catch

Filings show $1.5M raised for most recent period , Palin $250K, Begich $118K