Blog: Dermot Cole
Substitute for Lt. Gov.
Published Saturday, July 25, 2009
The announcement from the state said Craig Campbell will become lieutenant governor Sunday when Gov. Sarah Palin resigns and Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell steps up to the top job.
But to be accurate about this, Campbell is going to have to wait awhile before becoming lieutenant governor.
That’s because the lawyers are divided on whether he is eligible for the job without first winning legislative confirmation.
On July 3, Palin announced she would quit. Campbell said he was watching TV on a family trip to Texas when he learned the governor had decided to make him next in line to replace the lieutenant governor, replacing Corrections Commissioner Joe Schmidt as the designee.
Three days after Palin announced she was quitting, Schmidt wrote a letter saying he really wants to keep his job, which apparently served as his resignation letter from the lieutenant governor employment line.
Schmidt was confirmed as the next-in-line for the lieutenant governor’s job earlier this year.
In the past few weeks, state lawyers have studied the matter and concluded Campbell can become the “temporary/acting lieutenant governor” Sunday, pending legislative confirmation.
But they had to stretch the language of the law to create that new job title.
There is a provision for designating one or more state executives to substitute for the lieutenant governor in fulfilling certain tasks, which is not the same as making that person an acting lieutenant governor.
The tasks for the substitute are to “temporarily be custodian of the state seal and perform the authenticating functions of the lieutenant governor. ...”
In an administrative sense, this covers most of the lieutenant governor’s official duties, which include supervising elections, appointing notaries, handling some chores dealing with regulations and guarding the state seal.
But the most important job of the lieutenant governor is to be available to replace the governor. In this case, an un-elected designee serving as lieutenant governor would become “acting governor” in the event of a vacancy at the top.
Campbell is expected to win confirmation from the Legislature at the special session Aug. 10, after which he would be sworn in as lieutenant governor.
But he won’t be the “temporary/acting lieutenant governor” on Sunday.
He will “temporarily be custodian of the state seal,” responsible for performing “the authenticating functions of the lieutenant governor.”
What a mess we have with succession. The Alaska Legislature needs place this question before the Voters of Alaska for a change in the Constitution that clearly spells out the order of succession.
The successor to the Lt. Governors office should be an elected political individual from the House of the Senate, not a hired or appointed official.
I agree with you and sent emails to the interior delegation saying the same thing!
Palin created quite the mess for Alaskans to clean up. I don't think the framers of Alaska's constitution ever considered that a governor might just up and quit mid-term. Or that the person who was appointed and confirmed to be Lt Gov successor (Joe Schmidt) would refuse to do his job when it came time to step up. I wonder if Joe Schmidt was as surprised as Craig Campbell was when he heard the news on TV that Campbell is Palin's choice for the successor.
For people not thinking that a governor might just up and quit or step down....Who here remembers Wally Hickels first governorship....what was the progression from his first term in which he stepped down from?? This situation is not new to Alaska....
http://ltgov.state.ak.us/constitution.ph...
What does all this mean for GEN Campbell's military status ? Does he have to retire to take the job ? Is he on active duty or in a reserve status ?
66panhead: Gov. Walter "Wally" Hickel/Keith Miller 1966-69 then Gov. Keith Miller/Robert Ward 1969-70 to finish the term.
Governor William "Bill" Egan/"Red" Boucher 1970-74 were elected.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Gov...
This sure sounds like a "wash" job to me. The Legislature just expects the people to go along with anything. Campbell is a slick opportunist who has used Sarah Palin to get his little tin star and now this. "Hello" Alaskans Wake up and smell the corruption!!!
Campbell screwed the Guard and now he is given an opportunity to screw Alaska. He has been able to get away with unethical activities and I guess Palin has protected him. He should have been investigated a long time ago, but no one had the courage to do it.
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