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Alaska House passes resolution to maintain Denali as official name, 31-8
Summary
The Alaska House of Representatives voted 31-8 on a motion to reconsider and pass House Joint Resolution 4, expressing support for keeping the mountain's official name as Denali after floor debate that referenced local preference, cultural history and a presidential action renaming the peak.
The Alaska House of Representatives voted 31-8 to pass House Joint Resolution 4 on reconsideration, urging that the state continue to recognize the mountain officially as Denali.
Representative McCabe, who represents the district containing Denali, asked for the reconsideration and said constituents in Talkeetna, Healy, Cantwell, Denali Park and McKinley Village had told him they preferred the name Denali. "Denali, as you all know, is in my district," he said on the floor, describing local input he had received in the days before the vote.
The measure drew both support and opposition in floor debate. Representative Sadler said the resolution reflected respect for Alaska's culture and community, citing a broader need to have the state’s voice heard in national decisions. "I care not who writes a nation's laws, but I care more who writes a nation's songs," Sadler said, urging members to consider community and historical identity in naming. Representative Prox said he remained opposed, saying that pressing the matter publicly risks escalating a political confrontation with the federal government: "I am still opposed to this resolution."
Representative Gray provided historical context during debate, noting that a prior legislative effort — Senate Joint Resolution 6, introduced by Johnny Sackett in the 1970s — recommended the federal government change Mount McKinley's name to Denali and that the issue had a decades-long history in Alaska. Members on the floor also referenced recent federal action by the executive branch that altered the federal usage of the mountain's name.
The clerk announced the result as "31 yays, 8 nays," and the presiding officer declared the resolution passed. The motion to bring HJR 4 up for reconsideration was raised under the chamber's rules and the resolution was approved on reconsideration; no amendments were adopted on the floor. Further steps (such as transmittal or formal communication to federal officials) were not specified during the floor proceedings.
Background: House Joint Resolution 4 was presented on the floor as a statement of the House's preference to maintain the name Denali. Members debating the resolution framed their remarks around local sentiment, cultural history and the role of executive actions at the federal level. The House took the recorded vote after brief debate and approved the resolution by the 31-8 margin.
