Kevin Meyer (politician)

Kevin Gerald Meyer (born May 9, 1956 in Beatrice, Nebraska) is an American politician serving as Lieutenant Governor of Alaska since 2018. He was a Republican member of the Alaska Senate from January 20, 2009 to December 3, 2018, representing District M.[1] He was President of the Alaska Senate, leading a caucus of 14 Republicans and 1 Democrat from 2015 to 2017. Meyer served in the Alaska Legislature continuously from 2003 to 2018, in both the Alaska House of Representatives and Senate, previously representing the district when it was District O. He works as an Investment Recovery Coordinator for ConocoPhillips.

Kevin Meyer
14th Lieutenant Governor of Alaska
Assumed office
December 3, 2018
GovernorMike Dunleavy
Preceded byValerie Davidson
President of the Alaska Senate
In office
January 20, 2015 – January 17, 2017
Preceded byCharlie Huggins
Succeeded byPete Kelly
Member of the Alaska Senate
In office
January 2009 – December 3, 2018
Preceded byJohn Cowdery (O)
Constituency established (L)
Anna MacKinnon (M)
Succeeded byPeter Micciche (O)
Lesil McGuire (L)
Chris Birch (M)
ConstituencyO district (2009–2013)
L district (2013–2015)
M district (2015–2018)
Member of the Alaska House of Representatives
In office
January 2001 – January 2009
Preceded byJerry Sanders (19th)
Joe Hayes (30th)
Succeeded byTom Anderson (19th)
Charisse Millett (30th)
Constituency19th district (2001–2003)
30th district (2003–2009)
Personal details
Born
Kevin Gerald Meyer

(1956-05-09) May 9, 1956
Beatrice, Nebraska, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Marty
Children2
EducationUniversity of Nebraska, Lincoln (BS)
University of New Mexico, Albuquerque (MPA)
Alaska Pacific University (MBA)

Education

Meyer earned his BS in business administration from University of Nebraska–Lincoln, his MPA from University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, and his MBA from Alaska Pacific University.[2]

Elections
  • 2000 Challenging incumbent Republican Representative Jerry Sanders for the District 19 seat, Meyer won the August 22, 2000 primary with 706 votes (54.94%)[3] and won the November 7, 2000 General election with 4,502 votes (64.67%) against Democratic nominee Patti Higgins,[4] who had previously run for the seat in 1996 and 1998.
  • 2002 Meyer was unopposed for the August 27, 2002 Republican primary, winning with 1,664 votes,[5] and was unopposed for the November 5, 2002 General election, winning with 4,891 votes (96.41%) against write-in candidates.[6]
  • 2004 Meyer was unopposed for the August 24, 2004 Republican primary, winning with 1,664 votes,[7] and won the November 2, 2004 General election with 5,407 votes (70.96%), against Democratic nominee Rachael Higgins.[8]
  • 2006 Meyer was unopposed for the August 22, 2006 Republican primary, winning with 2,530 votes,[9] and was unopposed for the November 7, 2006 General election with 4,893 votes (94.55%), against write-in candidates.[10]
  • 2008 When Republican Senator John Cowdery retired and left the District O seat open, Meyer was unopposed for the August 26, 2008 Republican Primary, winning with 4,515 votes,[11] Meyer won the November 4, 2008 General election with 9,874 votes (68.88%) against Democratic nominee Doug Van Etten.[12]
  • 2012 With Democratic Senator Johnny Ellis redistricted to District I, Meyer was unopposed for the District L August 28, 2012 Republican Primary winning with 3,110 votes,[13] and won the November 6, 2012 General election with 10,304 votes (72.41%) against Democratic nominee Jake Hale.[14]

Controversy

In 2013, Meyer voted with the Alaska Senate Majority to pass Senate Bill 21, restructuring the state of Alaska's tax code for oil companies and reducing their tax burden. This vote benefited Meyer's full-time employer, ConocoPhillips. (Membership in the Alaska state legislature is not a full-time position, and Meyer, like many of his fellow members, maintain full-time employment elsewhere, taking leave when the legislature is in session.) When the bill came to the Senate floor, Meyer asked to be recused from voting. Under legislative rules, however, a member of the legislature must vote if any other members object, and several did.[15]

In 2015, Meyer announced he had offered a contract for communications consulting to McHugh Pierre.[16] Pierre formerly served as the civilian second in command for the Alaska State Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, but was forced to resign in 2014 after investigation revealed he had exerted inappropriate and undue influence to derail an investigation of a high school friend of his then serving in the National Guard and suspected of sexually assaulting another member of the Alaska National Guard. Investigation also revealed Pierre attempted to coerce whistle-blowers into signing non-disclosure agreements prohibiting them from speaking to the media or outsiders about ongoing problems with multiple sexual assaults and other misconduct in the Alaska National Guard.[17] Meyers described the allegations against Pierre, including those contained in the report prepared by the National Guard Bureau's Office of Complex Investigations as "hearsay."

References
  1. "Kevin Meyer". Juneau, Alaska: Alaska Legislature. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  2. "Senator Kevin Meyer's Biography". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  3. "Election Summary Report State of Alaska Primary Election 2000". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  4. "Election Summary Report State of Alaska General Election 2000". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  5. "State of Alaska Primary Election August 27, 2002 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  6. "State of Alaska General Election November 5, 2002 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  7. "State of Alaska 2004 Primary Election August 24, 2004". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  8. "State of Alaska 2004 General Election November 2, 2004 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  9. "State of Alaska 2006 Primary Election August 22, 2006". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  10. "State of Alaska 2006 General Election November 7, 2006 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  11. "State of Alaska 2008 Primary Election August 26, 2008 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  12. "State of Alaska 2008 General Election November 4, 2008 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  13. "State of Alaska 2012 Primary Election August 28, 2012 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  14. "State of Alaska 2012 General Election November 6, 2012 Official Results". Juneau, Alaska: State of Alaska Division of Elections. Retrieved October 31, 2013.
  15. "ConocoPhillips employees steer Alaska oil tax cut bill through Legislature". Anchorage, Alaska: Alaska Dispatch News. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  16. "Senate majority to hire official ousted amid National Guard scrutiny". Anchorage, Alaska: Alaska Dispatch News. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  17. "Military and Veterans Affairs official resigns at Parnell's request". Anchorage, Alaska: Alaska Dispatch News. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
Party political offices
Preceded by
Dan Sullivan		 Republican nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Alaska
2018		 Most recent
Political offices
Preceded by
Valerie Davidson		 Lieutenant Governor of Alaska
2018–present		 Incumbent
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