ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Earlier this month, State Rep. Kyle Johansen was re-elected to his third term and re-elected House Majority Leader for the upcoming session in Juneau.
On Nov. 5, Johansen decided to leave the majority caucus after the group refused to give fellow Republican Rep. Charisse Millett chairmanship of a committee she wanted.
Now, Ketchikan's only House member is apologizing for his actions.
He sent an e-mail to his colleagues saying, “I would like to rejoin the caucus as soon as possible. Upon reflection and through intense feedback from my constituents it is clear I have made a mistake in leaving the majority.
“I ask you to understand how important it is to me to be a valuable part of the group guiding policy in this state.”
Some lawmakers are weighing in on Johansen's request.
“As a Democrat, probably a Republican-led caucus isn't going to take my advice, but what I would say is we're all here to run the state, we all need to put our personality differences aside,” said Les Gara, D- Anchorage.
