907 Initiative

The 907 Initiative conducted campaigns targeting then-Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson (R), supporting increasing the base student allocation for public education, and opposing cutting funding for the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority.  ⁶

Background

The 907 Initiative has launched advertising and political campaigns in Alaska aimed mostly at Republican or right-leaning politicians. ² The 907 Initiative was founded in 2022 by left-of-center activists Aubrey Wieber, Sara Dykstra, and Kati Ward-Hamer. ³ It began with $341,000 in funding but did not disclose the source of the money. ⁴ The name is derived from the area code for Alaska. ⁷

The 907 Initiative uses mass communications to provide information on elected officials and issues to Alaskans through several paid advertising platforms. ⁶

Progress Now says that the 907 Initiative is an affiliate organization. Fuse Washington, which loaned 907 Action, 907 Initiative’s electoral arm, $10,000, is also an affiliate of Progress Now.  ⁴ Progress Now is a network of left-of-center state-level advocacy organizations founded by Michael Huttner, a New York attorney who co-wrote the book 60 Ways You Can Help Obama Change America.  ⁴ Among the donors to ProgressNow is the SixteenThirty Fund, which is part of the dark money network Arabella Advisers, which was acquired by the Sunflower Services. . ⁴

Political Initiatives

The 907 Initiative’s ad campaigns aimed at politicians are “carefully avoiding the line that triggers campaign finance disclosure laws,” Alaska Public Media reported. ⁸ In mid-2025, the 907 Initiative established AKDelegationWatch.org, which it described as a “resource for information about Alaska’s congressional delegation.” The content has relied mostly on mainstream media reporting and left-leaning political blogs. The site focused on U.S. Rep. Nick Begich (R) and U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R), who were seeking re-election in 2026. ³

The organization pushed the Alaska U.S. Congressional delegation to oppose cuts to public radio, provide more funding for Medicaid, and support abortion access. ^{9 10 11}

During the 2025 government shutdown, the 907 Initiative set up a “Soup for SNAP” protest outside the state offices of Alaska’s congressional delegation, calling for an end to the shutdown to fully fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that expired amid the shutdown. ¹²

The 907 Initiative launched a campaign against then-Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson (R) during the municipal election cycle. In 2024, it issued a scathing “Annual Performance Report” before the mayoral election. The report accused the Bronson administration of mismanagement and ethical lapses.  ³ Bronson lost the election to Suzanne LaFrance, a left-leaning candidate backed by 907 Action, the political spending arm of the 907 Initiative. ⁴

Alaska Public Media characterized the ads critical of Bronson as having the look of “typical political attack ads” that “feature dramatic music, unflattering photos and the slogan.” The slogan of the ads was “Incompetence has a price tag.”  ⁸

During the 2022 election cycle, the 907 Initiative worked with the Alaska Public Interest Research Group to file campaign finance complaints against groups that campaigned for Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R). One complaint accused the Republican Governors Association (RGA), and the group called A Stronger Alaska, of illegally coordinating. Another complaint alleged the RGA and A Stronger Alaska established a “sham” organization for campaign activities and did not fulfill campaign disclosure requirements. The RGA and A Stronger Alaska denied wrongdoing.  ⁸

Financial Backing

The Western Futures Fund contributed $275,000 to 907 Initiative in 2023.  ⁵

NEO Philanthropy gave $195,000 to the 907 Initiative in 2023.  ⁵

The Tides Foundation donated $100,000 to the 907 Initiative in 2023.  ⁵

Leadership

Aubrey Wieber is the co-founder and executive director of the 907 Initiative. ⁸ Wieber is a former Anchorage Daily News reporter. Wieber also worked as an aide to Anchorage city Assemblyman Chris Constant (D).  ¹³

Debra Call is the president of the board for the 907 Initiative.  ¹³ Call is also a board member of the Alaska Federation of Natives and a former Democratic Party candidate for lieutenant governor.  ⁸

Eleanor Andrews is the vice president of the board.  ¹³ Andrews has been a veteran Anchorage community activist. She was also inducted into the Alaska Women’s Hall of Fame.  ⁸

Sydney Scout is the treasurer of the board.  ¹³ Scout is an Anchorage energy analyst and organizer. Scout has also been a board member of the Alaska Public Interest Research Group.  ⁸