Gasoline in Shungnak, a remote village in Alaska's Northwest Arctic Borough, recently hit $26.82 per gallon, according to the Alaska Beacon. The village, which rests firmly in a state President Donald Trump won three times during presidential elections, is experiencing the surge as the fuel market faces extreme pressure tied to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. Although most Americans are paying nowhere near Shungnak's prices, the village’s prices reflect larger supply-chain disruptions and fuel expenses as a result of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The cost of living in the U.S.—including the long-running surge in prices at the gas pump—is a core issue for Americans as they're poised to vote in November's midterm elections to determine party leadership of the Senate and House of Representatives. Republicans currently control both chambers. Shungnak sits roughly 280 river miles east of Kotzebue on the Kobuk River, and air travel is the only reliable year-round transportation.
Store manager Glenda Douglas told the Alaska Beacon that gasoline had to be flown into the village twice this summer because barges could not reach the area. "Just yesterday, the price was 13.99, but now it is 26.82," Douglas said. Shungnak now appears to have the highest gasoline costs in the region, but the village has faced unusually high fuel costs for years.
The Alaska Beacon reported that gasoline in Shungnak cost $14.03 per gallon in 2022 and more than $8 per gallon in 2007. That's how you get a price that went from $14 to $26 almost overnight,” Michael Ryan, finance expert and founder of MichaelRyanMoney.com, told Newsweek. Disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz have kept global oil prices elevated, including fuel being purchased now for future Alaska deliveries.” The current price in Shungnak is dramatically higher than both state and national averages.
Ryan attributed the Trump administration’s decision to enter war with Iran as the driving factor behind skyrocketing oil prices. They buy gallons,” Ryan said. Particularly with Alaska already hosting a competitive Senate race.
One village won't decide an election but a continuing cost of living story might.” On Wednesday, the national average gas price was just over $4 per gallon, according to AAA. State averages ranged from a high of $5.623 to a low of $3.491. Only eight states still had average prices below $4 per gallon.
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