Christopher Kurka

Christopher Kurka

Republican Party

Prior offices

Alaska House of Representatives District 7

Successor: Justin Ruffridge

Predecessor: Colleen Sullivan-Leonard

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Elections and appointments

Last election

August 16, 2022

Personal

Birthplace

Anchorage, Alaska

Profession

Business owner

Contact

Campaign website

Personal Facebook

Personal LinkedIn

Christopher Kurka (Republican Party) was a member of the Alaska House of Representatives, representing District 7. He assumed office on January 19, 2021. He left office on January 17, 2023.

Kurka (Republican Party) ran for election for Governor of Alaska. He lost in the primary on August 16, 2022.

Biography

Christopher Kurka was born in Anchorage, Alaska, and went on to live in Wasilla, Alaska. Kurka’s career experience includes owning Noble Business Services and Heritage Alaska.

Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.

2021-2022

Kurka was assigned to the following committees:

• House Health & Social Services Committee
• House Judiciary Committee

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.

Elections

2022

See also: Alaska gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2022

General election

General election for Governor of Alaska

The ranked-choice voting election was won by Mike Dunleavy in round 1 .

		Candidate	%	Total Votes	Transfer	Round eliminated
		Mike Dunleavy	50.3	132,632	0	Won (1)
		Les Gara	24.2	63,851	0	1
		Bill Walker	20.7	54,668	0	1
		Charlie Pierce	4.5	11,817	0	1
		Bruce Walden (Write-in)	0.0	0	0	1
		Undeclared Write-insUndeclared write-in candidates may advance past the first round in some ranked-choice elections. If the official source reports write-in votes by candidate name, Ballotpedia displays them alongside the ballot-qualified candidates. However, if write-in votes are reported without a name, they will instead be included in the total write-in votes figure in Round 1. Please consult the official elections source for more details about unnamed write-in candidate vote totals past Round 1.	0.3	784	0

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 263,752
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Governor of Alaska

The following candidates ran in the primary for Governor of Alaska on August 16, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Dunleavy (R)	40.4	76,534
✔		Les Gara (D)	23.1	43,660
✔		Bill Walker (Independent)	22.8	43,111
✔		Charlie Pierce (R)	6.6	12,458
		Christopher Kurka (R)	3.9	7,307
		John Howe (Alaskan Independence Party)	0.9	1,702
		Bruce Walden (R)	0.9	1,661
		William Toien (L)	0.7	1,381
		David Haeg (R)	0.6	1,139
	Submit photo	William Nemec II (Independent)	0.2	347

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 189,300
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Jim Cottrell (R)

2020

See also: Alaska House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Alaska House of Representatives District 7

Christopher Kurka defeated Jamin Burton in the general election for Alaska House of Representatives District 7 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Christopher Kurka (R)	73.8	6,449
		Jamin Burton (Independent)	25.8	2,252
		Other/Write-in votes	0.5	41

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 8,742
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Alaska House of Representatives District 7

Christopher Kurka defeated Lynn Gattis in the Republican primary for Alaska House of Representatives District 7 on August 18, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Christopher Kurka	69.3	1,724
		Lynn Gattis	30.7	762

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,486
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Robert Yundt (R)

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Christopher Kurka did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign website

Kurka's campaign website stated the following:

“	Election Integrity When a nation loses its ability to trust its elections, it has, to some degree, lost hope of change or the peaceful hand over of power. I call for a thorough audit of the 2020 election in every precinct in Alaska. Our election system needs to be thoroughly reviewed and every election certified only after a hand-count of every ballot. Our election reform plan include the following: Ban Dominion Voting Machines Audit Alaska's Elections Repeal Ranked Choice Voting Fire Gail Fenumiai (current Division of Elections Director) Clean Voter Rolls Voter Photo ID Health Care Freedom Vaccine/health mandates are both unconstitutional and unconscionable for a free people. It is the duty of government to protect the individual liberty of the people to make our own healthcare decisions. Federal Overreach Alaska is a great state with abundant natural resources and, perhaps more importantly, a fiercely independent people. We do not need, nor should we tolerate, the out-of-control powers that be in D.C. telling us how to live or develop our resources. Tough on Crime Alaska has a deeply troubling crime problem. Criminals repeat offend at an alarming rate while the victims of the crime are left injured without meaningful restitution. Meanwhile our shortsighted legislature passed SB91 - an atrocious pro-crime bill (including our current Governor). Alaska needs a criminal justice system where punishment fits the crime and victims are protected. Every Alaskan deserves to feel safe and protected in this great State we call home. As Governor, I will do everything in my power to foster such an environment by fighting for criminal justice reform that ensures criminals have fair consequences for their crimes and victims receive restitution. Full Statutory PFD Let’s not mince words, I support paying the full Permanent Fund Dividend as calculated in Alaska law, including ALL the backpay (stolen PFD’s) owed to Alaskans, plus interest! While serving in the legislature, I have voted and fought for this at every opportunity including sponsoring budget amendments to pay back dividends. My number one spending priority is paying Alaskan’s full statutory dividend and I’ve voted against every budget bill that didn’t. I have three reasons for this position: #1. Follow the Law! Alaska’s Constitution requires the Governor to “faithfully execute the laws”. The PFD calculation in Alaska’s statutes hasn’t changed, the legislature and Governor just ignore it. The lawlessness of state government is out of control. Many politicians obfuscate, arguing about the size of the PFD, and purposely distract voters with unconnected claims about, “what we can afford”. The real issue is about the rule of law, not the size of the dividend. #2. It’s YOUR Money! There is a deep philosophical divide at the center of the PFD debate. Is the state sovereign or are the people of Alaska? Does state government own Alaska’s resource wealth or is it owned by Alaskans? I stand squarely on the side of the people, not the government. Some try to argue the PFD is a welfare check but ignore the fact we Alaskans gave up our individual subsurface property rights. This idea mistakenly assumes government ownership of our natural resources. The truth is, if state leaders followed the law and paid the full statutory PFD then many Alaskans would have less need for public assistance. The elitists in government think they will spend your money more responsibly than you and are therefore entitled to it. When COVID hit and the state locked down private businesses, instead of course correcting and giving hurting Alaskans their PFD, the politicians in Juneau doubled-down on spending, because for them .Now Alaska’s political elite are taking twice as much of your dividend as Gov. Walker did! As run-away inflation ravages consumer purchasing power, and global price-spike in fuel, state oil revenues have jumped. Alaskan households and small businesses silently suffer in the shadows of the government’s special-interest spending. There has been no greater time in which Alaskans have so desperately needed their dividend. #3. Sovereign Wealth Funds are Dangerous! Having the government fund itself with large investments it owns sounds like a great idea, right? Wrong. It’s actually a very dangerous idea. When the people do not pay for government, there is little incentive for government to remain accountable to the people. Late Gov. Jay Hammond (“father of the Permanent Fund”) warned us about this and we should have listened. Government is like a monster that never has enough - it always wants more. Just look at Norway; its government is supported through a sovereign wealth fund, and their government has grown so much it now has a 70% tax rate on the people! Is this the kind of system we really want for Alaska? Special interests in Alaska are aggressively lobbying to turn the Permanent Fund into a sovereign wealth fund. This is one reason why over the past few years, big government legislative leadership has been carefully funding its reduced so-called “PFD payments,” from sources outside the Permanent Fund Earnings Reserve account, and funding state government from the Permanent Fund. Now that spiking oil prices have once again made state government flush with cash, they are proposing a “resource dividend” instead of following the law and paying the dividend. You see, big government politicians know once oil prices go back to normal Alaskans can never afford to pay the kind tax they’ll need to fund the bloated government that special interests want. As your Governor I will not allow this to happen on my watch! Sanctity of Life It’s a scientific fact: At the moment of conception, pre-born babies have independent DNA. Not their mother’s. Not their father’s. Their own. From that moment forward, their hair and eye color -- all the way down to the shape of their little toes -- has already been determined. And yet, even knowing all of that, some who don’t want to deal with the “inconvenience” of having a child have the audacity to deny the preborn their humanity. This is an unspeakable tragedy. What’s worse is that instead of protecting life, the government has just “looked the other way” for over 40 years! Since the Supreme Court ruled on Roe vs. Wade in 1973, over 50 million babies have been aborted. During that time, we have listened to one promise after the other from politicians who are pro-life on Election Day but refuse to lift a finger to fight against abortion-on-demand once elected. This has resulted in 4 babies being put to death in Alaska every day. I believe this must stop. But not only do I believe it must stop, I have spent a large part of my life fighting for it to stop. As the former Executive Director of Alaska’s only statewide organization dedicated to the end of abortion, I have vetted candidates, pled with politicians, and written legislation in an effort to bring about the end of the greatest atrocity of our history. Through these efforts I have been subjected to the vitriol of the pro-abortion Left and the condescending under-handedness of the apathetic Political Class who have refused to lead on this paramount issue. My work on the Life at Conception Act (which I wrote and was introduced after years of changes and perfecting), showed me that much of Alaska’s Political Class really don’t want to touch this issue. It’s a devastating reality and one that I am committed to change. Alaska’s pre-born babies deserve a collective and ongoing plea for their lives. If you give me the opportunity to serve as the Governor of Alaska, I will work tirelessly to: Support and sign pro-life legislation that will save innocent human lives End state funded abortion I am 100% committed to the cause of the pre-born and, if elected, you can count on me to stand up for life even in the face of adversity. 2nd Amendment Oppressive gun laws often end up only producing more crime. You don’t have to look much further than Washington, D.C., New York City or Chicago to realize that. But if you listen to some folks, you’d think that law-abiding gun owners -- not the criminals themselves -- are to blame for every crime committed. Well, I think that blaming crime on guns is like blaming arson on matches. It’s that simple. I’m a firm believer in the individual right to keep and bear arms as enshrined in the Second Amendment to our United States Constitution. And, I also believe the right to defend yourself from evil-doers is the foundation of a free society. That’s why, when elected to Alaska's Governor, I’ll stand up to the gun-grabbers and vehemently oppose any new gun-control schemes coming from our out-of-control Feds. When elected, I pledge to stand up for the rights of hunters and gun collectors alike. But besides playing defense, I believe it’s time to start working to restore our Second Amendment rights that have been stripped away. I will eagerly support and sign legislation like a Carry on Campus bill. This kind of legislation would allow law-abiding Alaskan students to carry a handgun on campus to protect themselves. Not only am I making promises on the campaign trail – I have a proven record of Second Amendment defense through my work in being a founder and organizer of the 2nd Amendment Task Force (2ATF). You and I both know the only people who feel safer when we disarm the good guys are criminals who get their guns illegally. We Alaskans are a tough breed and I know that you, like me, value your right to carry in order to protect ourselves and our families – one of our most basic human rights. ...More Issue Positions Coming Soon	”
—Christopher Kurka's campaign website (2022)

2020

Christopher Kurka did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in Alaska

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

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2022

In 2022, the Alaska State Legislature was in session from January 18 to May 18.

2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].
In 2021, the Alaska State Legislature was in session from January 19 to May 19. The American Conservative Union Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.

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2022 Elections

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Candidate

Governor of Alaska

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Footnotes

Political offices
Preceded by Colleen Sullivan-Leonard (R)	Alaska House of Representatives District 7 2021-2023	Succeeded by Justin Ruffridge (R)