Ray Metcalfe

Background

Ray Metcalfe was born on the Crow Indian Reservation in Montana, where he lived until he left home at the age of fifteen.

Career

Metcalfe has served in the Alaska House of Representatives as a Republican, and later ran unsuccessfully for the United States Senate as a Democrat. He spent the next few years hitchhiking around the country, attending high schools in multiple cities and states until graduating from Billings Senior High School in Billings, Montana in 1969. He then hitchhiked to Alaska, arriving June 5, 1969 with a bedroll, a backpack and $53.00 in his pocket.

His life in Alaska alternated between Alaska"s oil fields and college, studying business and history until he opened Metcalfe Real Estate Company in 1976, which he operates to this day.

Metcalfe was twice elected to the Alaska House of Representatives as a Republican. He formed the Republican Moderate Party of Alaska in 1986, to oppose the religious right who he felt had invaded and taken over the Republican Party.

Shortly after Metcalfe formed the RMP, the leaders of the Republican Party sued him for forming a group using the term “Republican” without their permission. The Superior Court declared Metcalfe to be a “Public Litigant,” “litigating in the public interest in defense of free speech for all.” Consequently, under Alaska’s rules of court the new leaders of the Republican Party were ordered to pay all Metcalfe"s attorney fees.

In 2006, Metcalfe ran as a Democrat for the sole United States. House seat from Alaska, coming in second to Diane Benson by receiving 34% of the vote in the Democratic Primary.

In 2008 The Republican Moderate Party was dissolved and the Citizens Foreign Ethical Government Incorporated., a non profit political watchdog group was created. Metcalfe again declared he was running as a Democrat, this time for the United States Senate seat held by Ted Stevens, but he lost in the 2008 Democratic Primary.

Achievements

• Metcalfe won in Superior Court and the Republican Party did not appeal.