:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/shawmedia/UU27SJLNANE3JIWBGRCK5A5ZVE.jpeg)
In 2004 Mindy O’Neall, 1999 Creston High School graduate found herself learning to drive a stick-shift while driving across Montana in a Chevy S10 with “North to the future” painted on the side of it.
She and a friend had painted the truck before leaving Iowa and traveling to their new home of Alaska. Twenty-six years and 3,322 miles later, O’Neall will now take on the role of mayor in Fairbanks.
“I never ever thought about leaving Iowa,” O’Neall said.
On Oct. 7, incumbent Republican Mayor David Pruhs conceded the mayoral race to O’Neall after unofficial results from all 32 precincts showed her to have a 280 vote lead, accounting for 54% of the vote. “I ran a good race. So did Mindy. She had a lot of state Democratic Party backing. We had a low voter turnout, so it’s a perfect storm for her to take the seat,” Pruhs said during his concession speech.
Although she has not lived in Iowa in more than 20 years, she made a lasting impression during her high school career, especially to band director Michael Peters. “It did not surprise me one bit that Mindy went into politics,” Peters said. “What she was passionate about, she was very passionate about and always believed in what was fair and right and that that’s the way things should be.” Peters was able to reconnect with O’Neall in 2019 at her 20-year class reunion, when she and other alumni played with the high school band during the homecoming game. “I always knew Mindy would go on to do good things,” he said.
Fairbanks, one of the largest communities in Alaska, has not had a democrat mayor since John Eberhart, who served from 2013 to 2016. O’Neall was Eberhart’s campaign manager during his race.
Although it is a positive for the party, O’Neall said she didn’t run her campaign based on her party affiliation and local ballots don’t list the candidates party. “I ran because I felt I was a better choice for the community at this time,” O’Neall said, and the voters in Fairbanks Proper agreed.
It’s no shock to the Fairbanks voters that O’Neall is a Democrat and her political views and goals for the city are well known due to her activity within the community. O’Neall has served on the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly for six years and is the current presiding officer of the assembly through this month. She is also the executive director of Cold Climate Housing Research Center, a 25-year-old non-profit that focuses on resilient, sustainable, affordable housing in extreme cold climates and addresses all facets of housing, including socio-economic and technological research, policy, homeowner education and workforce development.
Her role there transitioned to the platform she ran for mayor on, addressing both the nationwide and local housing crises.
The city of Fairbanks is home to roughly 30,000 people and includes Fort Wainwright, a military base. O’Neall says 40% of the housing available isn’t acceptable by the military, for reasons such as not having running water or separation of bathrooms and other rooms within the home. As military presence on the base continues to grow, housing has not, and combined with the overall increase in homelessness, the need for safe, affordable housing is urgent.
O’Neall will be sworn in to office Oct. 27, but has already been to city hall to acclimate herself to her new surroundings. She is excited to bring in the Alaskan Native communities and Social Services to city hall and bridge the divide she says she heard about throughout her campaign. It is her goal that the groups gain a better understanding of each other, the needs each have and how they can help each other as a cohesive community.
“This campaign was about building a Fairbanks where everyone is respected, where housing is affordable, and where public safety is rooted in trust. Together, we proved that Fairbanks shines as a community that believes in listening, planning and coming together –– despite partisan politics," O’Neall said.