Peltola campaign accused of recruiting a second Dan Sullivan in Alaska Senate race

Summary

Alaska's close Senate race is in dispute after the New York Times reported that aides to Democrat Mary Peltola's campaign worked with a veteran Democratic operative, Jerid Kurtz, to recruit a second candidate named Dan Sullivan. According to the Times, a Peltola staffer was told to search for every Dan Sullivan in the state, which turned up Dan J. Sullivan, a retired teacher who registered as a Republican shortly before filing and later changed his registration to undeclared, so he will appear on the November ballot without a party label. He runs against Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan. Axios reports that President Trump accused Democrats and the Peltola campaign of fraud and perjury and called for criminal prosecution, though the Times did not establish that any laws were broken. Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy ordered an investigation into the Peltola campaign, and House Republicans are launching their own probe. The Guardian reports, citing ABC News and the Associated Press, that the Justice Department has reportedly issued subpoenas. The Alaskans for Mary campaign says it has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign. Concerns about the duplicate names date back months, and in June an Alaska election official ruled Dan J. Sullivan ineligible for the primary ballot.

Timeline

1. Axios

   29 Oct 2026, 12:21 UTCSource ↗

   Axios reports that Trump accused Democrats and the Peltola campaign of fraud and perjury after the New York Times reported that Peltola aides helped recruit another Dan Sullivan, and that Gov. Mike Dunleavy ordered an investigation into the Peltola campaign.

2. Axios

   29 Oct 2026, 20:05 UTCSource ↗

   Axios reports that Trump called for criminal prosecution although the Times did not establish that any laws were broken, and that House Republicans are launching their own Alaska Senate race probe.

3. The Guardian

   29 Oct 2026, 20:29 UTCSource ↗

   The Guardian reports, citing ABC News and the Associated Press, that the Justice Department reportedly issued subpoenas in response to the Times report on the same-name candidates.

4. The Guardian

   2 Nov 2026, 21:01 UTCSource ↗

   The Guardian reports that Republican officials have called for an investigation into an alleged ballot-stacking effort by Peltola's campaign, which Republicans call a ploy to split votes.