The Alaska State Capitol will be the site of a rally Monday, July 8, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

The Alaska State Capitol will be the site of a rally Monday, July 8, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Veto override rally shaping up to be big

Handful of organizations plan demonstration for Monday

A rally planned for Monday is shaping up to be a big one.

“Save Our State Rally for Overrides” is a joint effort among Juneau Arts & Humanities Council, Perseverance Theatre, Juneau Pro-Choice Coalition, University of Alaska Southeast and Juneau Central Labor Council AFL-CIO to show support for overriding Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s budget vetoes.

Overriding a veto takes a three-fourths vote in a joint session and would need to happen within the first five days of the special session, which starts Monday.

[More than $400 million in vetoes announced, more planned for next year]

The rally, which showed up as a Facebook event Wednesday, has already attracted 231 interested people. So far, 113 people have indicated they’ll be attending.

“I think the vetoes undercut what is a social compact between Alaskans and their government,” said Bruce Botelho, former Juneau mayor and one of the rally’s co-organizers, in an interview.

He said representatives from a handful of organizations are expected to speak but a final lineup of speakers is still coming together in light of relatively short notice and the Fourth of July holiday.


• Contact reporter Ben Hohenstatt at (907)523-2243 or bhohenstatt@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @BenHohenstatt.


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