JUNEAU -- Attorney General Craig Richards escaped unscathed from the Alaska Legislature's marathon confirmation session for Gov. Bill Walker's appointees Sunday afternoon, as did all of Walker's cabinet members. But fish wars, plus a political fight between Walker and Republican leaders, claimed a handful of the governor's lower-profile picks on the session's 90th day.
Richards, Walker's former law partner, was confirmed 36 to 23 in a joint vote by the House and Senate, with opposition coming from members of both parties. Democrats had objected to Richards' recent intervention on behalf of the state's ban on same-sex marriage in a U.S. Supreme Court case, while some Republicans said they didn't like his involvement in cases where he was on the opposite side of Alaska oil producers.
The Legislature rejected one of Walker's two nominees for the state fish board, Robert Ruffner, in a razor-thin 30-29 vote that crossed party lines, and with one Democratic House member absent in Anchorage for a brief visit on the day of his daughter's birth.
The Republican-dominated majorities in the House and Senate also shot down one of Walker's two picks for a board of directors for a state corporation charged with developing a natural gas pipeline from the North Slope.
In a news conference after the confirmation session, Walker said he appreciated the action taken on all of his nominees, which followed a dispute he had with legislative leaders over the votes' postponement from Friday.
"It's good to have that and it's exciting to have that process behind us," he said. "And we look forward to moving on."
He added that he'd called the five appointees who were rejected by the Legislature.
The vote on Richards' nomination was taken after no objection or debate. Richards said by email Sunday that he was pleased to have the confirmation vote behind him. He's one of Walker's closest confidantes.
"It feels good to be confirmed so I can shift all of my focus to the responsibilities of the office," Richards wrote. "I do appreciate the support shown by the Legislature and look forward to working for the people of Alaska."
Walker watched the first few confirmation votes, including the one on Richards, from his office on the third floor of the State Capitol. He was in the room with his spokeswoman Grace Jang and legislative director Darwin Peterson, a former aide to a Republican senator.
Seated at first, Walker stood up and studied the television when the votes were cast confirming Richards as attorney general. Walker hugged Jang and shook hands with Peterson, clapping and beaming.
"That was a little tense," Walker said after the vote. "We had to do a little math and whatnot, so there's been some issues associated with people concerned with him. And I'm very pleased he's confirmed. I think he'll be an excellent attorney general."
Fisheries board rejection
Following the vote on Richards, all of Walker's 10 other department commissioners were confirmed. But legislators thwarted several other nominations as they moved down Walker's list of 89 appointments over the course of five-and-a-half hours.
One was Ruffner, one of a pair of Walker's picks for the state fish board. He lost a 30-to-29 vote, defeated by a coalition that included Southcentral Republicans and Democrats.
Ruffner was chosen by Walker after another fish board pick, Roland Maw, withdrew his name as he came under investigation by Montana authorities over resident licenses he held in that state.
Ruffner, who runs a Kenai Peninsula conservation group, wasn't professionally affiliated with either side of the sport and commercial fishing divide that has marked Alaska's "fish wars." But his nomination came under attack by allies of sport fishermen, who viewed Ruffner as insufficiently supportive to fill a seat informally designated for them.
Fish board confirmations are notoriously contentious, and during a long discussion Sunday, several lawmakers referenced campaigns by interest groups to thwart or support Ruffner's nomination -- though they didn't name them directly.
Sen. Peter Micciche, R-Soldotna, speaking on Ruffner's behalf, cited an attack on the nominee that referenced "the tentacles of Robert Ruffner."
"Don't let somebody march into the building and tell you how to vote. Do the right thing," Micciche said. "I think a vote against Robert is a vote against integrity."
Sen. Bill Stoltze, R-Chugiak, told his colleagues that Ruffner's confirmation would end a 3-to-3 balance of fish board members aligned with sport and commercial fishing interests.
"It's been a stated goal of this nomination to break that balance," said Stoltze, one of the Legislature's most fervent sportfishing advocates. "If someone wants to declare war against Southcentral and the personal-use folks, I guess bring it on."
Oil and gas commission nominee rejected
In another vote, the Legislature rejected, in a 33-26 vote, the appointment of Michael Gallagher to the public member seat on the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.
Anchorage Republican Rep. Mike Hawker said Gallagher does not have experience in geology and engineering to serve on the commission.
Gallagher has long experience in organized labor and oil and gas contracting, but not in the details of reservoir management, Hawker said.
The law says the qualification for the appointment is that the candidate "shall have training or experience that gives the person a fundamental understanding of the oil and gas industry in the state."
Anchorage Rep. Les Gara, a Democrat, said Gallagher is smart, experienced and fully capable of handling the job.
Former Gov. Sarah Palin served as the public member on the AOGCC in 2003 to 2004, when she quit. Anchorage attorney John Norman followed from 2004 to 2014.
The AOGCC is in charge of ensuring the safety of petroleum wells and that oil and gas fields -- especially those with more than one lease owner -- are developed efficiently and without waste.
Thumbs-up for one former lawmaker, rejection for another
In their final action of the joint session, the Legislature approved two of Walker's three picks for the board of the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. -- former Republican Senate President Rick Halford and Hugh Short, a former Bethel mayor and now chief executive of the private equity firm Pt Capital who won confirmation without objection. A third appointee, former Democratic Sen. Joe Paskvan, was rejected.
The appointments filled seats of previous appointees that Walker fired, drawing objections from some top Republicans, especially in the House. The fight over their nominations was part of a months-long struggle between Walker and Republican legislative leaders over the state's plans for a natural gas pipeline from the North Slope.
Some Democratic lawmakers -- who have generally sided with Walker in the pipeline dispute -- said before the votes that they feared Senate President Kevin Meyer, R-Anchorage, was going to adjourn the confirmation session before the Legislature could take action on Paskvan and Halford.
Gara pulled a reporter aside to point out a state statute that says the Legislature "shall" act on the appointments, and other Democrats huddled with staff members during a break from the confirmation session.
But the votes ultimately took place, with lengthy debates before each one -- and after a delay that Democrats hoped would allow enough time for one of their members to return from a brief trip to Anchorage so he could vote for Paskvan's approval. The legislator, Rep. Chris Tuck, D-Anchorage, didn't make it in time, but his vote wouldn't have made a difference.
Halford, who served 24 years in the Legislature, won the support of the Democratic minorities in both the Senate and the House and a scattering of Republicans.
Legislators backed Halford, who served from Chugiak, on a 35-24 vote, while they rejected Paskvan, from Fairbanks, on a 31-28 vote.
Rep. Mike Hawker, R-Anchorage, said Halford and Paskvan were unqualified for the AGDC board, as they lack specific expertise in building pipelines or in the natural gas industry.
But supporters said both men have a wealth of experience in public policy and good judgment.
Paskvan's confirmation failed on a 11-9 vote among Senators and 20-19 among House members.
Fairbanks Republican Sen. Pete Kelly, who defeated Paskvan in the 2012 election, voted against the appointment, as did fellow GOP members of the Fairbanks delegation -- Reps. Steve Thompson, Tammie Wilson and Dave Talerico and Sen. John Coghill.
Fairbanks Republican Sen. Click Bishop voted to confirm Paskvan.
An earlier version of this story incorrectly said that the Legislature resolved two confirmations for the Alaska Gasline Development Corp. board. It actually had three: Rick Halford, Joe Paskvan and Hugh Short.
Alaska Dispatch News reporter Dermot Cole and photographer Marc Lester contributed to this story.