Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has ordered a state investigation into Democratic Senate nominee Mary Peltola’s campaign following explosive allegations that political operatives recruited a candidate with the same name as Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan to confuse voters ahead of the midterm elections.
The Republican governor announced the investigation Wednesday evening after a New York Times report detailed an alleged behind-the-scenes effort to place another Dan Sullivan on Alaska’s Senate ballot.
The revelation has sparked a political firestorm just days before Election Day, with President Donald Trump demanding that Peltola and the alleged spoiler candidate be removed from the ballot.
According to the Times, individuals connected to Peltola’s campaign were involved in an effort to recruit a candidate whose name matched that of the incumbent Republican senator.
The effort ultimately resulted in retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan entering the race, creating an unusual situation in which two candidates named Dan Sullivan will appear on the same ballot.
Alaska’s election system allows four candidates to advance to the general election, making the identical names particularly noteworthy in the closely watched Senate contest.
Critics argue the arrangement could cause voters intending to support the Republican incumbent to mistakenly select the other Sullivan.
However, Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have denied participating in the alleged recruitment operation.
Dunleavy said the reported circumstances warranted an official investigation into whether state election laws were violated.
In a social media statement, the governor accused those allegedly responsible of attempting to “deliberately confuse voters and misdirect their votes.”
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“Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support,” Dunleavy wrote. “Deliberately tricking voters into casting their ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of our elections.”
The governor directed Alaska’s Department of Public Safety to investigate the matter and determine whether the alleged conduct could justify criminal charges or civil enforcement proceedings.
The announcement immediately escalated scrutiny of Peltola’s campaign as the Democratic nominee attempts to unseat Sullivan.
Trump also weighed in Wednesday, accusing Democrats of attempting to manipulate the election through the similarly named candidate.
“The Democrats cheated! They found a man named Dan Sullivan, put him on the Ballot, then lied to the Court, and said they didn’t know anything about it,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “That’s perjury. She shouldn’t be allowed to run, and neither should the FAKE Dan Sullivan!”
The president’s accusations have not been established in court, and the newly announced investigation does not itself prove that Peltola or her campaign committed wrongdoing.
The controversy follows another legal battle involving Alaska‘s Senate election.
Last week, Donald Trump directed the Justice Department to pursue litigation seeking to block certification of the Senate election results if the Republican incumbent loses.
That lawsuit alleges Dan J. Sullivan entered the contest as a Republican “with the intention of misleading” voters.
The separate legal action underscores the growing concerns surrounding the potential impact of two candidates sharing nearly identical names in a competitive statewide race.
While Republicans argue the circumstances raise serious election integrity questions, the existence of a candidate with the same name as an incumbent does not automatically establish an illegal scheme.
Investigators will now have to examine the reported recruitment effort and determine whether anyone crossed the line from political maneuvering into unlawful election interference.
For Peltola, the allegations arrive at a particularly damaging moment, with voters preparing to decide one of the nation’s closely watched Senate contests.
The Democratic nominee continues to deny involvement, while Dunleavy has made clear that his administration intends to examine the allegations through official state channels.
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