"I'm flattered to be considered," said Elton, 60, who has represented Juneau in the Legislature since 1994, first in the House and currently in the Senate.

The Anchorage Daily News' gossip column on Feb. 8 noted rumors that Elton had gotten the job and would be moving to Washington, D.C.

Elton

Elton said he received a number of calls about the rumors that day, but the story was not accurate.

"If there were something to announce, I don't think it would be done in a gossip column," he said.

Alaska's Democratic former Gov. Tony Knowles had been mentioned as a possible candidate for Secretary of Interior, but the position instead went to Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado.

The department is one of the key agencies touching a variety of Alaska issues, including the National Park Service, the Minerals Management Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs and others.

The position for which Elton is being considered is a special assistant to the secretary.

"The idea is that Alaska is such a large and different sort of responsibly for the Interior Department that having someone with specific, intimate knowledge of Alaska helps the secretary in his decision-making process," said John Quinley, spokesman for the National Park Service's Alaska region.

Former Alaska Senate President Drue Pearce resigned from the Senate in June 2001 to take the special assistant position, a political appointment. She is currently the federal pipeline coordinator, working toward an Alaska natural gas pipeline.

Elton was head of the Obama campaign in Juneau, but has one other attribute that may help him get the Interior position. He's a close friend of Pete Rouse, a former Alaskan who served as chief of staff for Obama's Illinois Senate office. Rouse also serves as chief of staff for Obama's transition team.

"Every time we go back to D.C., we stay with Pete," Elton said.

The most recent visit was to attend the inauguration of President Obama.

If Elton were to resign from the Senate, Gov. Sarah Palin would select a member of the same party to represent Senate District B, made up of the two Juneau-area House Districts.

The gossip column, compiled by Sheila Toomey, also said there people are "jockeying" for Elton's seat, and that Democratic Rep. Beth Kerttula is the "odds on" favorite. Kerttula declined comment.

Pearce was based in Washington, D.C., but some previous special assistants for Alaska have been based in Anchorage.