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Leland Chancy Croft (August 21, 1937 – August 30, 2022) was a
workers' compensation Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...
attorney and
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
politician from the U.S. state of
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S ...
. Elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 1968, he served a single term from 1969 to 1971. He was then elected to the Alaska Senate, serving in that body from 1971 to 1979, including serving as the president of the Senate from 1975 to 1977 during the 9th Alaska State Legislature. In 1978, he ran for
Governor of Alaska A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
, winning the Democratic nomination in the
primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...
over two challengers. He would then become the first of 3 major party nominees in Alaska gubernatorial elections to place third in the general election. The 1978 gubernatorial election was dominated by Republican challenger Walter Hickel. Hickel lost the primary to incumbent Jay Hammond by 98 votes, then launched a write-in campaign, which outpolled Croft in the general election. Croft largely retired from electoral politics after this campaign, but remained prominent in legal and political circles in Alaska. He founded the Croft Law Office, a workers' compensation firm, in downtown Anchorage, and appeared before the Alaska Supreme Court in over sixty cases. He served a term on the University of Alaska Board of Regents from 1995 to 2003, including as chair of the body from 2001 to 2002. His older son,
Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* a ...
, has gone on to have his own political career.


Early life

Leland Chancy Croft was born in
Jennings, Louisiana Jennings is a city in, and the parish seat of, Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana, United States, near Lake Charles. The population was 10,383 at the 2010 census, a small decline from the 2000 tabulation. The city is 68 percent white. Jennings ...
on August 21, 1937, the son of Leland Croft, an oil and gas landman and geologist, and Dorthy (née Chancy) Croft, a violin teacher. He grew up in
Odessa, Texas Odessa is a city in and the county seat of Ector County, Texas, United States. It is located primarily in Ector County, although a small section of the city extends into Midland County. Odessa's population was 114,428 at the 2020 census, ma ...
, where he graduated high school. He graduated from the
University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
with baccalaureate degrees in government and sociology, as well as a law degree. Not long after arriving in
Anchorage Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring ...
from Texas in 1962, Croft became a charter member of the
Alaska Legal Services Corporation Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S ...
, serving as chairman of the Board of Governors from 1971 to 1978.


Political career

Chancy Croft was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 1968, serving a single term. He was then elected to the Alaska Senate in 1970, serving from 1971 until 1979.''Alaska Legislature Roster of Members 1913-2010'', p. 47-54 He served as
Senate President President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for ex ...
from 1975 to 1977. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for
Governor of Alaska A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
in 1978. Croft won the nomination over Jalmar M. Kerttula and Ed Merdes; both had served in the Senate themselves. Croft was paired with lieutenant gubernatorial nominee
Katie Hurley Olga Katherine Torkelsen Hurley (March 30, 1921 – February 21, 2021) served as the Secretary to Alaska Territorial Governor Ernest Gruening from 1944 until his departure from office in 1953. She was Chief Clerk to the Alaska Constitutional Conv ...
. Hurley, as Katherine T. Alexander, was a government official in the latter days of the
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; th ...
, who married
Alaska constitution The Constitution of the State of Alaska was ratified on April 4, 1956 and took effect with Alaska's admission to the United States as a U.S. state on January 3, 1959. History and background The statehood movement In the 1940s, the movement for ...
signer James J. "Jim" Hurley in 1960 and settled in his home area, the Matanuska-Susitna Valley. While still involved in Democratic Party politics, Hurley was largely out of the public eye at that point, busy raising her daughters in Wasilla. Croft's campaign would be the first of three times in Alaska gubernatorial elections that the major party nominee came in third in the general election. The campaign was overshadowed by the aftermath of the Republican primary between incumbent Jay Hammond and former governor Walter Hickel. Hickel lost the primary by 98 votes, and after an extensive court challenge, launched a write-in campaign. Both Hammond (who won reelection) and Hickel outpolled Croft in the general election. Croft was a member of the University of Alaska
Board of Regents In the United States, a board often governs institutions of higher education, including private universities, state universities, and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual ...
from 1995 until 2003; he was chairman from 2001 to 2002. He worked to provide educational service to rural Alaska communities while guiding the university toward increased distance delivery education. He is responsible for establishing the Regents Scholarship benefiting UA junior, senior and graduate students. Croft was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Law from the University of Alaska Anchorage.


Legal career

Chancy Croft appeared before the Alaska Supreme Court in over sixty cases, winning two-thirds of those cases. In at least twelve cases, he lost to the Alaska Workers Compensation Board and in the
Alaska Superior Court The Alaska Court System is the unified, centrally administered, and totally state-funded judicial system for the state of Alaska. The Alaska District Courts are the primary misdemeanor trial courts, the Alaska Superior Courts are the primary fe ...
, only to succeed in the Supreme Court. He founded The Croft Law Office, located in an older downtown Anchorage office building near the Conoco-Phillips Building. In 1986, his article, ''Something More Important Than Money: Vocational Rehabilitation in Workers Compensation Cases'', was published in the ''
Alaska Law Review The ''Alaska Law Review'' is an academic law journal that is devoted to legal issues relating to the State of Alaska. First published in 1971, since 1984 it has been published by students at Duke Law School in Durham, North Carolina every June an ...
''. The article lauded the Alaska statute providing injured workers with training for new careers. The legislature promptly repealed the statute. He unsuccessfully worked with the legislature on potential changes to the Alaska Workers Compensation Act. In 2005, he sued the governor of Alaska, challenging the constitutionality of legislation which created a new executive court to hear appeals from decisions of the Alaska Workers Compensation Board.


Personal life

Leland Chancy Croft was commonly known by his middle name, which is also his mother's maiden name. His oldest child,
Eric The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* a ...
(see below), bears the same middle name. He was married to Antoinette Ruth "Toni" (née Williamson) Croft, a graduate of Stanford University. He had three children- Eric, Kymberly and Lee. Eric's own career in politics would also include serving in the legislature and running for governor. He additionally ran for mayor of Anchorage. Eric worked with his father at The Croft Law Office. His sister, Dona Lee Croft, is a professor of violin at the
Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...
in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.


References


External links


Alaska's Digital Archives
- Photo of Chancy Croft while Senate President, taken September 7, 1976
Chancy Croft
at ''100 Years of Alaska's Legislature'' , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Croft, Chancy 1937 births Alaska lawyers Lawyers from Anchorage, Alaska Living people Democratic Party members of the Alaska House of Representatives Politicians from Anchorage, Alaska People from Jennings, Louisiana People from Odessa, Texas Presidents of the Alaska Senate Democratic Party Alaska state senators University of Alaska regents University of Texas School of Law alumni