Denies bid to dismiss

By Marcia Kuszmaul

Homer Independent Press

A state ethics committee Friday rejected Rep. Sarah Vance’s effort to throw out accusations against her, finding probable cause that she had violated the Alaska legislative ethics code.

Vance (R-Homer) used official state letterhead, official state social media and her official title to complain to the owners of the Homer News about an article covering a vigil for Charlie Kirk she helped organize in September 2025.

That letter, which brought swift cuts to the original article by newspaper management, precipitated 18 complaints to the legislature’s ethics committee.

The committee’s written determination will follow. According to the legislative ethics code, if, as in Vance’s case, the committee finds that a probable violation exists, it may recommend corrective action or sanctions or both and hold additional hearings. 

Vance, who did not attend the meeting to defend her actions, had argued that her letter was within her free-speech rights as a legislator and had asked for “outright dismissal of all complaints.”

She refused to provide documents and answers to questions from the committee during its  investigation. On social media this weekend, Vance said she expects a full investigation to follow the committee’s findings.

In response to a question from the Homer Independent Press, Vance wrote, “It is disappointing the Ethics committee didn’t honor my Free Speech and dismiss the coordinated complaints.

“I am waiting to receive the written determination from the committee and will consult with my attorneys on the best path forward.”

In previous communications with the committee, Vance has referenced Liberty Counsel, described on its web site as “a nonprofit ministry that operates a pro bono litigation program providing assistance and representation involving religious freedom, the sanctity of life and the family.”

Vance said Liberty Counsel is willing to get involved should the investigation not be “resolved at the dismissal stage.” 

H. Conner Thomas, a Nome attorney who chairs the House ethics committee as one of five public members, said the common and most consistent allegation across the complaints is that Vance violated a provision of the Alaska State Legislative Ethics Act that prohibits legislators and staff from using public funds, facilities, equipment or government resources (including official stationery) for nonlegislative purposes, private benefit or partisan political activities.

The seven-member committee deliberated in a closed executive session Friday on whether to bring forward a probable cause determination or dismiss the allegations. After nearly four hours, Thomas issued a brief statement that the committee “. . . has found probable cause by a majority vote.”

Reacting to the committee’s findings, Kathy Carssow, one of the original complainants, texted, “I find this very heartening and hope that others holding elected office will be reminded that with the power invested in them via their office comes the responsibility to use it for the good of their constituents, rather than to threaten those with whom they disagree.”

Widely reported at the time, Vance took exception to the Homer News story’s identifying Kirk as “far-right” and a “Christian nationalist icon” and some of his views as “racist and controversial.” Vance urged the owners to take “corrective action.”

The owners, Carpenter Media Group, replaced the story on the web with an unattributed rewrite and deleted the language Vance found objectionable without consulting the reporter or her editor. Four journalists, including the reporter and her editor, from three state newspapers – Homer News, Peninsula Clarion and Juneau Empire – resigned, citing the owners’ bow to political pressure and unethical tactics.

In a 30-minute session at the opening of the meeting on Friday, the committee heard from four Homer-area residents before entering into closed deliberations on complaints filed against Vance.

One of the original complainants, Shirley Evans, said, “I really felt that the separation of church and state was problematic with the use of Representative Vance’s letterhead for her opinion.”

Kate Finn called Vance’s actions “a breach of a most basic principle of American democracy.” She recalled that Vance’s letter threatened financial and reputational consequences to the newspaper.

“The free press must be free of government interference and coercion,” Finn said. “Ms. Vance had no right to use her leverage as a sitting elected state official in this way.”

The committee also considered numerous letters from local constituents calling for Rep. Kevin McCabe (R-District 30), a legislative member of the committee, to recuse himself from its deliberations.

In a letter to the committee included in the meeting packet, Carssow noted that both Vance and McCabe are leaders in the National Association of Christian Lawmakers, which, according to its website, works “in pursuit of the shared cause of God and Country.” Vance is the first vice chair of the NACL Executive Committee and its Alaska state chair. McCabe is the Alaska state vice chair of the same organization.

Carssow wrote, “The appearance of a conflict of interest arises (1) out of their relationship with one another as state leaders of this organization and (2) by the particular importance of the subject matter of the news article to which Rep. Vance publicly objected . . . .”

McCabe did not recuse himself and was not disqualified to participate in the committee’s deliberations.

The Charlie Kirk episode is a strange twist in the political career of Vance, who was first elected to represent Homer in the legislature in 2018.

In 2017, Vance herself led an effort to remove three Homer city council members from office because of things they said about protection of immigrants. 

As part of the group behind a recall effort, Vance advanced the allegation that the council members were unfit because they used their elected offices as a “platform for broadcasting political activism,” which the group claimed is “unlawful, unethical and outside the bounds of permissible conduct in public service.”

The city council members countered that legislators have constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression “so that the people’s elected representatives may discuss, debate and deliberate with freedom.”

Following a special recall election, all three council members retained their seats.

The current investigation is not the first time Vance has faced an ethics violation charge at the state level. In 2022, a single complaint alleged that Vance’s use of the phrase “protect your God given constitutional rights” following a campaign promise violated the First Amendment constitutional right to freedom of religion and the 14th Amendment. 

The House ethics committee dismissed these allegations, pointing out that the complaint did not allege use of any state resources, which differentiates it from the current investigation, and that the state-level committee does not have jurisdiction in potential federal constitutional violations.

Full video, transcript and documents from the meeting are available on the Alaska State Legislature web site.