A Mat-Su Democrat who won Alaska Teacher of the Year in 2009 announced his bid for lieutenant governor Thursday.
Math teacher Bob Williams, 48, is a district chairman for the Alaska Democratic Party and the first Democrat to file paperwork to compete for the statewide office. Republican state Sen. Lesil McGuire registered to run for the seat on Wednesday.
"One of the things I'm very interested in is having a teacher's perspective come into the Alaska political discussions," Williams said.
Williams holds a master's degree in mathematics education from Columbia University and is pursuing a doctorate in public policy and administration, he said. Raised in the Valley, he worked as a teacher in New York City, in West Africa, as a Peace Corps volunteer and in Nome before returning to the Mat-Su. He lives near Wasilla and works at Colony High School.
This is his first bid for statewide office, Williams said.
He filed a letter of intent with the Alaska Public Offices Commission on Tuesday to run for lieutenant governor.
No Democrats have filed paperwork to run for governor. Republican Gov. Sean Parnell registered in May to seek re-election.
Twitter updates: twitter.com/adn_kylehopkins. Call Kyle Hopkins at 257-4334 or email him at khopkins@adn.com.
By KYLE HOPKINS