The following is a statement from Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund President Rodger Schlickeisen, regarding the defeat of Ballot Measure Two in Alaska.

"We, along with our thousands of Alaska members and our many ally organizations, are disappointed by the outcome of the Ballot Measure Two vote. Supporters of this initiative were up against a huge juggernaut, in the form of a state legislature and a governor beholden to pro-aerial hunting lobbyists. These special interests have spent years giving huge amounts of money to aerial hunting proponents, making sure they hold positions of power in the state, and it paid off for them today.

We are no less determined to make sure that Alaska manages its wildlife in a responsible manner and we will continue to work to end the brutal practice of shooting wildlife from airplanes."

Ballot Measure Two would have ended the same-day aerial hunting of wolves and bears, reinstating predator control by state officials only in the event of a biological emergency.

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The Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund (www.defendersactionfund.org) provides a powerful voice in Washington to Americans who value our conservation heritage. Through grassroots lobbying, issue advocacy and political campaigns, the Action Fund champions those laws and lawmakers that protect wildlife and wild places while working against those that do them harm.