William A. Thomas Jr. (born June 1, 1947) is a businessman, commercial fisherman, and politician from the U.S. state of Alaska. Thomas served as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

Alaska House of Representatives The Alaska State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. The House is composed of 40 members, each of whom represents a district of approximately 17,756 people per ...

from the 5th District, comprising scattered rural and semi-rural communities throughout

Southeast Alaska Southeast Alaska, colloquially referred to as the Alaska(n) Panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia (and a small part ...

and stretching westward to

Prince William Sound Prince William Sound (Sugpiaq: ''Suungaaciq'') is a sound of the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the east side of the Kenai Peninsula. Its largest port is Valdez, at the southern terminus of the Tr ...

, from 2005 to 2013. Thomas served in the majority his entire tenure in the House and held multiple chairmanships. Thomas gained a seat on the powerful House Finance Committee during his second term and would eventually co-chair the committee. Following

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

, Thomas lost reelection in 2012 by 32 votes to 23-year-old

Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins Jonathan S. Kreiss-Tomkins (born February 7, 1989) is a member of the Alaska House of Representatives. A Democrat, he represents the state's 35th district, which encompasses many Southeast island communities including Hoonah, Sitka, Kake, Klawo ...

, a political newcomer who left

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

to run.

Early life

William A. Thomas Jr. was born in Haines,

Territory of Alaska The Territory of Alaska or Alaska Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from August 24, 1912, until Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959. The territory was previously Russian America, 1784–1867; the ...

on June 1, 1947, and is a lifelong resident of Haines and the surrounding Chilkat Valley. He is descended from the

Tlingit The Tlingit ( or ; also spelled Tlinkit) are indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their language is the Tlingit language (natively , pronounced ),

Natives of nearby Klukwan village. Speaking before a Native organization in Juneau about his origins, Thomas once explained "And the Thomas? That came from

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

". Bill Thomas graduated from Haines High School in 1965. Shortly thereafter, he briefly attended the

University of Alaska The University of Alaska System is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Alaska. It was created in 1917 and comprises three separately accredited universities on 19 campuses. The system serves nearly 30,000 full- and part-time stud ...

before joining the U.S. Army, where he served for two years. While in the Army, he served 6 months in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

in 1968 during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Business career

Bill Thomas began commercial fishing for a living ca. 1970, and has continued in this line of work ever since. He has mostly run gillnets and longlines. Thomas has also served as chairman and CEO of his village's Native corporate, Klukwan, Inc. This position has led to Thomas serving on the board of directors of a number of the corporation's subsidiaries.

Political career

Early political career

Bill Thomas began working as a

lobbyist In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...

in Juneau ca. 1991, mostly representing small community concerns throughout Southeast Alaska. He also spent four years apiece on the Haines Borough assembly (legislative body) and school board. In 2004, Democrat

Georgianna Lincoln Georgianna Lincoln (born February 22, 1943) is an American politician and businesswoman. Born in Fairbanks, Alaska Territory, Lincoln graduated from Lathrop High School in Fairbanks, Alaska in 1960. She also went to University of Alaska Fairbank ...

, who represented the sprawling, rural District C in the

Alaska Senate The Alaska State Senate is the upper house in the Alaska Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Alaska. It convenes in the Alaska State Capitol in Juneau, Alaska and is responsible for making laws and confirming or rejecting gub ...

(Lincoln hailed from the

Yukon River The Yukon River (Gwichʼin language, Gwich'in: ''Ųųg Han'' or ''Yuk Han'', Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, Yup'ik: ''Kuigpak'', Inupiaq language, Inupiaq: ''Kuukpak'', Deg Xinag language, Deg Xinag: ''Yeqin'', Hän language, Hän: ''Tth'echù' ...

village of

Rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * "O'er the Ramparts We Watched" is a key line from "The Star-Spangled Banner", the national anthem of the ...

), did not seek reelection. 5th District member of the

Albert Kookesh Albert Matthew Kookesh, Jr. (November 24, 1948 – May 28, 2021) was an American politician who served as a member of the Alaska Senate. He represented District C as a Democrat from 2005 through 2013. Previously he was a member of the Alaska Ho ...

, filed to run for the Senate, eventually winning. Thomas ran for the 5th District House seat, citing his experience as a lobbyist as being beneficial to the position. Thomas won election in 2004 by 59 votes over Tim June, a fellow commercial fisherman from Haines, who was active in environmental and watershed issues for many years. Thomas would be reelected mostly easily thereafter, including defeating June by an approximately 61 to 38 percent margin in 2008.

Alaska House of Representatives

24th Alaska State Legislature

In the 24th Alaska State Legislature, Thomas served as co-chair of the House Community and Regional Affairs Committee, as well as co-chair of the Fisheries Committee. He also served on the Education, Military and Veterans' Affairs and the Transportation Committees in the House. ;2007-2008 *Member, Finance Committee ;2005-2006 *Commerce, Community & Economic Development *Fish & Game *Transportation ;2007-2008 *Chair, Administration *Chair, Fish & Game since 2004. He served as co-chair of the Finance Committee and was a member of the Legislative Budget & Audit Committee. He also chaired the Governor and the Legislature Finance Subcommittees for the 27th Legislature.

2012 election loss

Due to an Alaskan Supreme Court order, the redistricting board has redrawn the district lines for the 2012 election based on state constitutional requirements. Major changes have been proposed to the Southeast region, including Thomas's district. The proposed plan combines the 5th District with Juneau, the state capital directly to the south. Constituents from Haines Borough have objected to the new map, town mayor Stephanie Scott stated "we do not believe that we are socio-economically integrated with the Mendenhall Valley, we don't have the same concerns, the same needs."

Sitka russian: Ситка , native_name_lang = tli , settlement_type = Consolidated city-borough , image_skyline = File:Sitka 84 Elev 135.jpg , image_caption = Downtown Sitka in 1984 , image_size ...

was the Democratic challenger to Thomas. Kreiss-Tomkins subsequently defeated Thomas by 32 votes, following a recount. As ballot-counting continued beyond election day, the lead went back and forth, even tying at one point.

References

External links

Alaska State House Majority Site for Rep. Bill Thomas

House Majority Site RSS Feed for Rep. Bill Thomas

Legislative Facebook Page for Rep. Bill Thomas

Alaska State Legislature Biography for Rep. Bill Thomas

Project Vote Smart profile

Bill Thomas 2012 Campaign Website

Bill Thomas 2012 Campaign RSS Feed

Bill Thomas 2012 Campaign Facebook Page

Bill Thomas
at ''100 Years of Alaska's Legislature'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Bill 1947 births Living people 21st-century American politicians 21st-century Native Americans Alaska Native people American fishers United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Borough assembly members in Alaska Republican Party members of the Alaska House of Representatives Native American state legislators in Alaska People from Haines Borough, Alaska School board members in Alaska Tlingit people University of Alaska Fairbanks alumni United States Army soldiers