Two D. Sullivans on Alaska Ballot Spark Voter Confusion Claims

Two candidates named Dan Sullivan are currently listed on the Alaska U.S. Senate ballot for the midterm election. President Donald Trump and Sen. Dan Sullivan, a Republican from Alaska, are accusing Democrats of intentionally confusing voters in the state. The controversy centers on Democratic candidate Mary Peltola, a former Alaska congresswoman now running for the Senate.

The New York Times reported Wednesday that Peltola’s campaign staffers attempted to recruit a candidate with the same name as the incumbent Republican senator. While the effort is not illegal, the reports prompted Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, to order an investigation into alleged election manipulation.

Trump commented on the issue Thursday before departing for South Carolina. He stated, “So nobody’s going to know what to do. That’s a fraud. And it shouldn’t be allowed to happen.” Trump added that the move was made in conjunction with Sen. Chuck Schumer and others, calling it “an absolute, it’s called voter fraud.”

Vice President JD Vance supported the president’s stance on Thursday. Vance said, “It’s disgraceful, so whether it’s criminal or not, she certainly has committed, I think, a great moral failing and hopefully the voters of Alaska punish her.”

Peltola’s campaign issued a statement saying it had “no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.” The two men are distinguished on the ballot by their middle initials and party labels. Daniel J. Sullivan appears with no modifiers, while Daniel S. Sullivan is listed with the labels incumbent and Republican next to his name.

Alaska’s highest state court previously ruled that both men should remain on the ballot. The state uses ranked choice voting for its elections. If no candidate secures a majority in the Senate race after Tuesday’s midterm elections, the ranked choices will be tallied to determine the winner.

Rep. James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky and chair of the House Oversight Committee, announced Thursday that he is launching an investigation. Comer is examining whether the Peltola campaign tried to intentionally confuse voters. He issued a letter requesting in-person testimony from key Peltola staffers next week.