What to Know About the 2 Dan Sullivans on Alaska’s Senate Ballot

Alaska voters will see two candidates named Dan Sullivan when they rank their choices for the U.S. Senate on Nov. 3. The second one is now at the center of a federal lawsuit, a state investigation, a congressional probe, and a complaint to the Federal Election Commission.

The race could help decide control of the Senate. The Cook Political Report rates it a toss-up.

Who Is On the Ballot

Incumbent U.S. Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R-Alaska) is running for a third term against Democrat Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman. Republican Gerald Heikes and Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher from Petersburg, Alaska, are also on the ballot.

The state’s sample ballot lists the senator as “Sullivan, Dan S.,” a registered Republican, and marks him as the incumbent. The other candidate appears as “Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.” with no party listed.

Alaska uses open, top-four primaries and ranked-choice general elections, so voters can rank all four candidates.

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How the 2nd Sullivan Got On the Ballot

Daniel J. Sullivan filed to run in late May. Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has said the candidate asked the Division of Elections to list him as “Daniel S. Sullivan,” though his middle name doesn’t start with S.

In June, the division cited “credible allegations” that he filed to confuse voters and removed him from the ballot. A state court restored him, and the Alaska Supreme Court upheld that ruling.

Daniel J. Sullivan has denied trying to confuse anyone. In a June 11 statement, he called himself a qualified candidate who followed the rules and filed under his legal name.

The New York Times Report

The New York Times reported Oct. 28 that aides to Peltola allegedly worked with staff at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and an operative named Jerid Kurtz on what they called a “Ballot Composition Project” to recruit candidates who could pull votes from the senator.

The report said the effort allegedly helped bring Daniel J. Sullivan into the race.

Much of the report relies on Elisa Rios, Peltola’s former campaign manager, who was fired in August. She later asked The New York Times to retract her statements, and the paper published them anyway, saying her account matched its other reporting.

“I knew nothing about any other candidate on the ballot except for me and the incumbent,” Peltola told supporters in Juneau on Oct. 29. “I am not interested in tricking voters.”

Eric Croft, chair of the Alaska Democratic Party, said on CNN on Oct. 30 that the state party wasn’t involved.

“For the record, the Alaska Democratic Party had nothing to do with this,” he said.

He said he didn’t know about any recruitment effort until it was reported, and he argued that nothing in Alaska law bars encouraging someone to run.

Asked whether he supported the tactic, Croft said no, though he added that it didn’t outrage him.

He said party lawyers warned him that speaking publicly could get him subpoenaed, and he committed to accepting the certified results.

The Lawsuit

The Investigations

Deputy Commissioner Austin McDaniel said anyone found to have broken state law would be held accountable, and he declined to give details because the investigation is ongoing.

“If that means that the certification then is stopped or changed, then that’s what happens,” he said.

In a statement to The Epoch Times on Oct. 30, a spokesperson for Peltola’s campaign criticized Dunleavy’s response as a threat to overrule voters.

“Mary won’t be intimidated by Dunleavy, Sullivan, or any of their D.C. allies who are trying to steal this election from Alaskans before votes are counted,” the spokesperson said.

President Donald Trump called for Peltola to be prosecuted, and Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Fox News that Democrats are “cheating.”

On Oct. 30, the National Republican Senatorial Committee asked the FEC to investigate the Peltola campaign and the DSCC.

NRSC National Press Secretary Bernadette Breslin called the allegations damning and said Alaskans would leave Peltola unranked.

Nate Adams, a spokesperson for the senator’s campaign, told The Epoch Times that Peltola’s campaign spent months denying a scheme it was running all along.

What Happens Next?

Votes will be counted after polls close on Tuesday. If no candidate wins a majority of first-choice votes, the ranked-choice tally that follows could take weeks.

Zachary Stieber, Jack Phillips, Matthew Vadum, Aldgra Fredly, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.