Two new directors join the GVEA board that sets Interior power rates

The people who decide what Interior Alaska pays for electricity just got two new faces. Dave Messier and Philip Wight won seats on the board of Golden Valley Electric Association, the member-owned cooperative that powers Fairbanks and much of the Interior, after the board certified the 2026 election results at its June 23 meeting.

It's easy to tune out a utility board election, but for a cooperative, this is the part members actually own. GVEA's customers are its shareholders, and the board they elect sets electricity rates, decides where the Interior's power comes from, and steers the co-op's long-term direction — choices that land on every member's monthly bill at a time when energy costs and supply across Alaska are anything but settled.

Messier and Wight didn't have to wait long to feel the weight of it. On the same day they were seated, the board took up a fuel supply contract amendment — exactly the kind of behind-the-scenes decision that shapes what members pay. Both were part of that first vote.

The results were certified June 23, with no disputes reported.