Beth Kerttula J.D. ’81 resigned from the Alaska Legislature for a fellowship with her alma mater, Stanford University. 

The Juneau Democrat has served in the House since 1999 and as minority leader since 2007. She hadn’t drawn a general election opponent since 2004 and would have been up for re-election again this year.

Kerttula is leaving to serve as visiting fellow with the Center for Ocean Solutions at Stanford University in California. In that role, she will be involved in meetings and communications to help strengthen decision-kers’ understanding of policy implications of changing oceans and climates.

Prior to running for the Legislature, Beth Kerttula worked in private practice and served as an assistant public defender in the 1980s and assistant attorney general in the ’90s. Kerttula has been a vocal advocate on women’s and children’s issues, equal rights and of Alaska getting its "fair share" for its oil and gas resources.

In the attorney general’s office, she worked with the state’s coastal management program and on oil and gas issues. As a legislator, she supported efforts to set standards for cruise ship waste discharges and in more recent years she supported — unsuccessful — efforts to re-establish a coastal management program after it lapsed.