Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly member Jesse Bjorkman announced Friday that he is joining the race for the central and northern peninsula’s state Senate seat. Bjorkman, who is also a teacher at Nikiski Middle-High School, said Friday that he has been considering running for “a few months” and wants to give voters more options.

Bjorkman said he is seeking the seat because he wants the peninsula to be represented in the Alaska Legislature by someone who is responsive and who has a proven track record of providing results for working families.

“Our community needs to be a great place for folks of all ages to live, work and play, and to achieve that goal, we need a growing economy that supports freedom-loving, hardworking Alaska families,” Bjorkman said.

Among the legislative issues Bjorkman said would be important to him if elected to the Senate are election security and an Alaska Permanent Fund dividend solution. He said that he does not support ad hoc dividend amounts, which he said create distrust in government. He said he would be a strong opponent of government mandates and seek to cut state spending, if elected.

He highlighted the recent sweeping election reforms adopted by the borough assembly last year as part of what he called his “proven track record” of providing results. That legislation was described as a way to codify some of the borough’s existing election policies. Among other things, the legislation established a clear chain of custody for ballots during an election, and introduced the public testing of tabulation machines.

Bjorkman confirmed he will concurrently run for reelection to the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly’s Nikiski seat, which he has held since 2019. Soldotna resident Tuckerman Babcock and incumbent Republican Sen. Peter Micciche have also filed to run for the seat.

“I think in many, many ways, Sen. Micciche has represented our community well,” Bjorkman said. “I certainly am not running opposed to Sen. Micciche.”

Bjorkman praised Alaska’s citizen legislator model, which he said will allow him to stay active in the community and to teach for half of the year if elected.

“I want to make sure that there is another option on the ballot to represent the people of the central and northern Kenai Peninsula,” Bjorkman said. “I think I would fulfill that role well, because of my experience in local government, as well as my community involvement.”

Alaska’s general election will be on Nov. 8.

Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.