Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy ordered the investigation into whether the campaign of Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola violated state laws or should face criminal charges or civil action for allegedly recruiting an outside contender with the same name as the Republican incumbent.
The probe follows a New York Times report saying operatives and aides connected to Ms. Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee helped recruit a retired teacher named Dan J. Sullivan Jr. to enter the U.S. Senate race against incumbent GOP Sen. Dan S. Sullivan.
The Republican governor said this tactic is meant to “deliberately confuse voters and misdirect their votes.”
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“I am therefore directing the Department of Public Safety to investigate whether this scheme violated Alaska’s laws and whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted. The evidence will determine what happens next,” Mr. Dunleavy said in a statement.
The New York Times reported Wednesday that the “ballot composition project” began in the summer of 2025 and led to the recruitment of Dan J. Sullivan.
Dan J. Sullivan, running as a Republican, has maintained that he entered the race of his own accord.
SEE ALSO: Trump seizes on ‘fake’ Dan Sullivan report, calls for Peltola’s removal from Alaska ballot
“Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support,” he said. “Deliberately tricking voters into casting their ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of our elections. Anyone or any organization found to have broken the law must be held accountable.”
Ms. Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC refuted accusations that they played a role in recruiting candidates.
“The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign and did not recruit any candidates into the race,” the campaign said.
The Times report comes less than a week after the Justice Department filed a lawsuit to preemptively block certification of the race if Dan J. Sullivan ended up costing the incumbent, Dan S. Sullivan, reelection.
Earlier this year, the Alaska Division of Elections initially removed Dan J. Sullivan from the primary ballot, but the Alaska Supreme Court ruled in June that there was no legal basis under state law to remove the second Sullivan from the ballot.
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