Zach Fansler is an American politician. He served on the Bethel City Council from 2014 to 2016, and in 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 38th District from 2017 to 2018. He was first elected to the House in 2016, defeating Majority Whip Bob Herron in the Democratic primary. Fansler resigned on February 12, 2018, due to allegations of assault.

Biography

Early life

Fansler was born in

Lebanon, Pennsylvania Lebanon () is a city in and the county seat of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,814 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Lebanon is located in the central part of the Lebanon Valley, east of Harrisbu ...

. He has lived in

Bethel, Alaska Bethel ( esu, Mamterilleq) is a city in Bethel Census Area, Alaska, United States. It is the largest community on the Kuskokwim River, located approximately upriver from where the river flows into Kuskokwim Bay. It is also the largest city in ...

since 2011, and lived there previously from 2001 to 2004. He served on the Bethel City Council from 2014 to 2016, and has worked for the Tundra Women's Coalition and was on the faculty at the

University of Alaska Fairbanks The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-grant research university in College, Alaska, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for cla ...

. Zach also worked for Angstman Law Office providing legal services & the k300 as a manager.

Alaska House of Representatives

Fansler was first elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 2016. While he ran unopposed in the general election, Fansler defeated Bob Herron in the primary with 57% of the vote. Herron was the Majority Whip for the Republican Party at the time.

Climate

In 2017, Fansler visited villages in the

Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta The Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta is a river delta located where the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers empty into the Bering Sea on the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. At approximately in size, it is one of the largest deltas in the world. It is larg ...

to learn about the threat to the communities posed by flooding and erosion due to

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

. Fansler said that the erosion "is something that we see in almost every village that we go to," and while he would not make a promise, he said that he was hopeful that the visit would help him better advocate for solutions.

Assault allegations

On January 25, 2018, the ''

Juneau Empire The ''Juneau Empire'' is a newspaper in Juneau, Alaska, United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consist ...

'' reported that Fansler was being investigated an incident that took place on the night of January 13, in which Fansler twice slapped a woman while drunk in a hotel room, which caused a rupture in her

eardrum In the anatomy of humans and various other tetrapods, the eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane or myringa, is a thin, cone-shaped membrane that separates the external ear The outer ear, external ear, or auris externa is the extern ...

. Fansler's attorney denied the allegation on his behalf. Text messages provided to the ''Empire'' show that Fansler said the following the morning after the incident:

I'm really sorry. I really, really like you and I'm sorry I ventured into my kink bdsm so early with you. I am so, so sorry to upset you. Can we please start over and try again?

Fansler received condemnation from

BDSM BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged ...

communities for the statement, with the head of the Alaska Center for Alternative Lifestyles saying that

consent Consent occurs when one person voluntarily agrees to the proposal or desires of another. It is a term of common speech, with specific definitions as used in such fields as the law, medicine, research, and sexual relationships. Consent as und ...

is integral to BDSM activities.

Bryce Edgmon Bryce Edgmon (born May 3, 1961) is a member of the Alaska House of Representatives, representing the 37th District since 2006. He served as speaker from 2017–2021. The district includes all or portions of the Kodiak Island Borough, Aleutians ...

, the Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives, asked for Fansler's resignation, stating that "Credible information came to my attention yesterday afternoon that Rep. Fansler had possibly behaved in a manner unbecoming of a legislator." On February 2, Fansler announced that he would resign from the Alaska House of Representatives, effective February 12. He pled guilty to second-degree harassment, and was sentenced to ten days of suspended sentence, as well as eighty hours of community service, a year of probation, a yearlong ban from alcohol, and an order to seek treatment for

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

Electoral history

2016

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fansler, Zach Democratic Party members of the Alaska House of Representatives 21st-century American politicians Living people Place of birth missing (living people) People from Bethel, Alaska Year of birth missing (living people)