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Alaska Capital Relocation Site Selection Measure (1976)
| Alaska Capital Relocation Site Selection Measure | |
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| Election date |
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| Topic State capitals |
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| Status |
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| Type Commission-referred state statute |
Origin |
The Alaska Capital Relocation Site Selection Measure was on the ballot as a commission-referred state statute in Alaska on November 2, 1976. Voters selected Willow, Alaska, located in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, for a new state capital.
Election results
| Alaska Capital Relocation Site Selection Measure (1976) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| 33,170 | 31.42% | |||
| 16,169 | 15.32% | |||
| 56,219 | 53.26% | |||
Source: Alaska Department of Elections
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Capital Relocation Site Selection Measure was as follows:
| “ | BALLOT MEASURE Capital Site Selection The capital site selection committee has selected three potential capital sites which are set out below. The law provides that the qualified voters of the State are entitled to vote for one of the alternate capital sites selected by the committee and that the site receiving the greatest number of votes shall be the site of the new capital city of Alaska. Vote For No More Than One Larsen Lake Mt. Yenlo Willow | ” |
Background
State capitals ballot measures in Alaska
Between 1960 and 2025, nine measures have been on the Alaska ballot that concern the location of the state capital. One additional measure, from 2002, concerned the location of the state legislative sessions.
Of the measures, three (33.3%) were approved, and six (66.6%) were defeated. One of the measures, the 1976 referral, was neither approved nor defeated. In that measure, voters decided between three potential sites for a state capital.
| Year | Measure | Yes vote | No vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Initiative 1, Cook Inlet State Capital Measure | 44.1% | 55.9% |
| 1962 | Initiative 1, State Capital Relocation Measure | 45.1% | 54.9% |
| 1974 | Initiative 1, New State Capital in Western Alaska Initiative | 56.7% | 43.3% |
| 1976 | Capital Relocation Site Selection Measure | N/A | N/A |
| 1978 | Bonding Proposition 10, New State Capital Bond Measure | 26.2% | 73.8% |
| 1978 | Ballot Proposition 3, Voter Approval Requirement for Capital Relocation Costs Initiative | 55.7% | 44.3% |
| 1982 | Measure 8, Relocation of State Capital Advisory Question | 47.1% | 52.9% |
| 1994 | Measure 3, State Capital in Wasilla Initiative | 45.3% | 54.7% |
| 1994 | Measure 5, Voter Approval Requirement for Capital Relocation Bonds Initiative | 77.4% | 22.6% |
| 2002 | Measure 2, Move Legislature to Matanuska-Susitna Borough Initiative | 32.8% | 67.2% |
Locations of proposed Alaskans capitals
Sitka was the capital of the territory of Alaska until 1906, when the capital city changed to Juneau. Between 1960 and 2002, six different locations were proposed as potential capital cities for the State of Alaska.
A 1960 ballot initiative would have moved the capital to the Cook Inlet-Railbelt region, which was described in contemporary news articles as the Anchorage, Alaska area.[1]
In 1976, voters chose between three cities potential cities for the new state capital: Larson Lake, Mount Yenlo, and Willow. Willow won the majority vote with 53.2% of voters selecting the city.
A 1994 ballot initiative would have moved the state capital to Wasilla, Alaska.
In 2002, Alaskan voters decided Measure 2. That measure would not moved the state capital, but it would have moved the location of the state legislative sessions to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. In Alaska, boroughs act as a form of local government and function in the same way that counties do in other states.
State capitals ballot measures by state
- See also: State capitals ballot measures
Of the nine states that have placed measures on the ballot that concern the location of the capital city, Alaskans have seen the most on the ballot. Omitting the 2002 initiative, which would have moved the state's legislative sessions and not the capital city, Alaskans have decided nine ballot measures. Oklahomans, with the next largest amount of ballot measures, have decided five.
| State | Measures on the ballot | Approved by voters | Percentage approved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 9 | 4 | 44.4% |
| California | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Colorado | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
| Maine | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
| North Dakota | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| Oklahoma | 5 | 1 | 20.0% |
| Oregon | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
| South Dakota | 1 | 0 | 50.0% |
| Washington | 2 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Total | 22 | 9 | 40.9% |
Path to the ballot
In 1974, voters approved Initiative 1, which provided for a governor-appointed committee to nominate two or three sites in Western Alaska for a new state capital for voters to select.
See also
Footnotes
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State of Alaska Juneau (capital) |
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