Dan Juarez used a published letter to endorse Sen. Dan Sullivan, arguing his leadership was proven through military service and public office rather than rhetoric.
30 years in the Marine Corps anchors that case: Juarez said Sullivan was twice recalled to active duty while serving in office, deployed to Afghanistan in 2013 and retired as a colonel.
Alaska defense priorities featured heavily in the endorsement, with Juarez crediting Sullivan for strengthening Fort Greely missile defense, expanding investment at Eielson and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, and pushing Arctic security.
Juarez also pointed to Sullivan's support for service members and veterans, including work to fulfill long-delayed land promises to Alaska Native Vietnam veterans.
The letter casts Alaska as a frontline state in the Arctic and Indo-Pacific, framing Sullivan's record as relevant amid rising global security threats.
As new icebreakers and Marine forces rush to the Arctic, will Alaska's rapid $7 billion transformation secure the nation's most vulnerable frontline?
With billions flooding into Alaska's military bases, can Anchorage survive the looming housing and labor crisis this massive defense buildup will trigger?