ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced Thursday that the state Department of Public Safety will investigate whether the campaign of Democratic Senate nominee Mary Peltola broke the law by allegedly recruiting a candidate with the identical name of her Republican opponent.
The move by the Republican governor follows an investigation by The New York Times detailing how operatives tied to Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, or DSCC, worked to recruit Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher, to run against incumbent Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan to split the vote.
Dunleavy wrote on social media that the report exposed “disturbing new evidence of an organized effort to manipulate Alaska’s elections” and directed law enforcement to see “whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted.” He added that deliberately misleading voters strikes at the integrity of elections, though he did not specify which statutes may have been breached.
Trump urges prosecution as GOP reacts
President Donald Trump escalated attacks on the race Wednesday, writing on Truth Social that Peltola and her namesake opponent should be barred from the ballot and face criminal charges. Trump called the recruitment effort “ELECTION FRAUD” and accused Democrats of lying under oath about their knowledge of the candidacy.
Sen. Dan Sullivan also spoke out Wednesday night during an appearance on Fox News, demanding his opponent “come clean” about her role. Fellow Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski echoed that sentiment, accusing the Democratic campaign of fostering a culture of deception.
The practice of ballot-stacking, in which campaigns encourage alternate candidates to peel support from rivals, is generally legal under election law and has occurred in both parties, according to The New York Times. However, state officials had already scrutinized the candidacy earlier this year.
Legal battles and campaign denials
In June, the Alaska Division of Elections attempted to drop the retired teacher from the ballot after determining his name was meant to cause confusion. Days later, the Alaska Supreme Court reversed that decision and reinstated him, ruling that state law does not mandate candidates run in good faith. The court ordered election officials to distinguish the two men on the ballot, where the incumbent is listed as a Republican and his opponent appears as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. without a party affiliation.
The general election ballot also includes Peltola and a fourth contender, Gerald Heikes. Under Alaska’s ranked-choice system, a candidate must capture more than 50 percent of the vote to secure victory.
According to The New York Times, text records and former campaign aides indicated that operative Jerid Kurtz made contact with the retired educator, who expressed a willingness to mount a spoiler bid to aid Peltola. The report noted that while former campaign manager Elisa Rios said Peltola knew about the recruitment effort, the candidate did not actively manage it. Rios subsequently sought to take back her remarks to the newspaper.
Peltola and national Democrats have denied running a scheme. In an official statement, Peltola’s campaign stated it maintained no connection to either Sullivan campaign, while the DSCC issued a similar denial. Speaking at a campaign event in Soldotna on Wednesday, Peltola dismissed the report as a media distraction designed “to sell newspapers” away from pocketbook matters.
Federal authorities have also intervened. Last week, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit seeking to block the certification of the Senate results if Peltola wins, arguing that voter confusion from the duplicate names could compromise the election. Alaska officials have requested a dismissal, calling the federal suit legally baseless.
More than 61,000 ballots had been submitted early across Alaska through Tuesday, according to Associated Press data. It remains unclear whether the state investigation will reach any findings before voters conclude casting ballots on Tuesday.
