Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy directed state police to investigate whether Democrat Mary Peltola’s Senate campaign violated election laws by recruiting a candidate with the identical name as her Republican opponent, Senator Dan Sullivan, in what officials call a deliberate voter deception scheme.
Criminal Investigation Launched After Times Report
The Department of Public Safety probe follows a New York Times investigation revealing that Democratic operatives connected to Peltola’s campaign helped encourage Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher, to enter the race. Text messages and interviews obtained by the Times showed coordination between campaign workers and the duplicate candidate as part of what appeared to be a broader strategy to add confusion to the ballot. The Alaska Division of Elections had already begun examining the matter before Dunleavy escalated it to criminal investigators.
Dunleavy warned that deliberately tricking voters undermines election integrity. “Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support,” the governor wrote on social media. “Deliberately tricking voters into casting their ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of our elections.” President Trump joined Republican calls for prosecution, stating Peltola “shouldn’t be allowed to run” and demanding she face charges for what he termed election fraud.
Democrats Deny Involvement Despite Evidence
Peltola dismissed the controversy as a “distraction” during a campaign stop in Soldotna, claiming voters care more about healthcare costs than ballot composition. Her campaign spokesperson insisted they have “no involvement with either Sullivan campaign,” while the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee similarly denied any role. However, the Times documentation directly contradicts these denials, showing Democratic operative participation in recruiting the second Sullivan candidate. Senator Sullivan’s campaign accused Peltola of “gaslighting Alaskans” after months of denying what they called an orchestrated scheme.
Ranked Choice System Creates Confusion Opportunity
Alaska’s nonpartisan primary system advanced four candidates to the general election ballot, where voters rank their preferences rather than selecting just one candidate. The sitting senator appears on the ballot identified as Republican and incumbent, while Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. has no party affiliation listed beside his name. This format creates opportunities for voter confusion when candidates share identical names. Republicans have complained for months about what they call a “sham candidate” designed to split votes and trick Sullivan supporters into accidentally supporting the duplicate challenger instead of the incumbent senator.