Fairbanks elections: Hannah Ekalook and Sue Sprinkle run for Fairbanks City Council

FAIRBANKS, Alaska (KTUU/KTVF) - In the 2025 municipal election, Hannah Ekalook and Sue Sprinkle are both running for seat C on Fairbanks City Council.

Ekalook said she noticed that it was hard to find things for young children to do in town during the winter.

“I really want to make Fairbanks a community that is involved with each other, right? So local businesses supporting local businesses,” she said.

Living downtown, Ekalook noticed a number of issues in the area, including homelessness and addiction.

“It kind of hit me one day that I was just sick of complaining about how I’m sick of this and how we need to do things to help this part of the community and we need to help, you know, this, that and whatever it may be, and maybe it’s just time to, like, jump in and try and be part of the solution instead of just the negative voice that’s always complaining,” she explained.

If elected, Ekalook said she would bring a fresh perspective and would focus on public safety, including mental health.

She added, “I know that our Alaska Native community is hurting as far as all of our missing Alaska Natives. I think that we all just need to start taking better care of each other, like I said, as a community.”

According to Ekalook, Fairbanks thrives when the community thrives.

“I think that the younger generation needs to start stepping up as far as when it comes to things that we want, what we want to see in our community, what we want for the future, what we want for our children, what we want for our business, whatever it may be,” she said.

Incumbent Sprinkle, meanwhile, said she hopes to build on what she has gotten done in her first three years on the council.

During her time on the council, Sprinkle highlighted her work with vacant or blighted properties in the city.

“I have, since being elected, worked on ordinances for blight, ordinances for vacancy and vacant properties that need, maybe, not babysitting, but if you’re gone for six months, the police will know that you’re gone, you can have people trespassed. Sometimes that’s an issue. If they can’t find out who owns a property, they can’t know that someone shouldn’t be there,” she explained.

Sprinkle wants to make sure that people can live in Fairbanks.

“We’re short housing for people with either the housing stock that’s offline or people who are doing Airbnbs. We’ve seen a lot of that, so neighborhoods are having trouble putting people in homes. We’ve got a homeless issue, so I think those two go hand in hand,” she said. “That’s a real push for me.”

She views housing as a holistic problem, saying those looking to stay in Fairbanks and bring their families not only need housing, but schools and businesses to support them.

Sprinkle said she loves the way the current city council works together, having honest conversations.

“I would love to see that chemistry continue. We are great. We have a good team. I really, really respect all of my council members. I would say that we have gotten a lot done in the last three years,” she added.

Ekalook and Sprinkle will appear on the ballot only for residents of the City of Fairbanks on Election Day, October 7.

In the race for seat D on the council, incumbent Crystal Tidwell is running unopposed.

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