Democrat Peltola's campaign recruited spoiler Dan Sullivan candidate

Summarised from 5 outlets · 6 reports · Updated 28 Oct, 19:51 · Archive

Mary Peltola's Alaska Democratic Senate campaign worked with party officials to recruit a second candidate named Dan Sullivan to split votes against incumbent Republican senator Dan Sullivan.

Mary Peltola's Democratic campaign for Alaska's US Senate seat worked with officials from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to recruit a second candidate named Dan Sullivan to run in the race, the New York Times reported on Wednesday. The effort, described as the 'ballot composition project', aimed to split votes against incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan. A Peltola staffer was instructed to search state voter rolls for people with that name.

Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired schoolteacher from south-eastern Alaska, switched his voter registration to Republican shortly before filing his candidacy in the race. Peltola's former campaign manager Elisa Rios told the Times that whilst Peltola was not directly involved in orchestrating the project, she was 'definitely aware' of it. Rios later attempted to retract her comments, but the newspaper said her initial interviews were corroborated by text messages, internal documents and 11 other sources.

Peltola's campaign and the DSCC have denied participating in efforts to recruit spoilers to the ballot. However, the Times reported that the group worked to coax other would-be spoilers into the race beyond the second Dan Sullivan, to dilute the incumbent's support.

The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit seeking to delay certification of the election result if the incumbent loses, asking a federal judge in Alaska to block certification of any Senate race result 'that may be impacted by voter confusion' pending an investigation into whether votes for Daniel J. Sullivan were meant for Senator Sullivan. The Peltola campaign and DSCC have filed a motion to dismiss the Justice Department's lawsuit, arguing that the federal law cited by the DOJ governs voter registration, not candidate eligibility or ballot design.

The Senate race carries national significance as Republicans seek to defend their narrow Senate majority. Donald Trump shared the Times article on Truth Social, calling it proof of 'election fraud' and stating that Peltola should not be allowed to keep her name on the ballot. Nate Adams, a spokesperson for Sullivan's campaign, said 'Alaskans deserve the truth' and accused Peltola and her campaign of 'gaslighting Alaskans' by denying a scheme they were running.

How it is being reported

• Trump demands Alaska ballot change after report on Dems recruiting Dan Sullivan to campaign‘A FRAUD ON THE AMERICAN PUBLIC,’ the president wrote after The New York Times reported that Democrats spent months seeking to recruit a man named Dan Sullivan to challenge Republican Senator Dan S. SullivanIndependent World · 28 Oct, 20:12
• Democrat Mary Peltola’s campaign reportedly recruited second Dan Sullivan in Alaska Senate raceRepublicans have condemned the presence of two Dan Sullivans on the ballot, calling it a ploy to split votes Alaska Democrat Mary Peltola’s campaign was behind an effort to recruit a challenger with almost the exact same name as Republican US senator Dan Sullivan, both of whom will appear on the ballot in next week’s midterm elections, the New York Times reported Wednesday. Republicans have condemned the presence in the race of two candidates named Dan Sullivan – one the two-term US senator, the second a retiree living in south-eastern Alaska with scant political experience – calling the…Guardian World · 28 Oct, 19:25
• Mary Peltola campaign and Dems backed covert scheme to field spoiler candidates in Alaska Senate race: reportMary Peltola's campaign allegedly ran a covert "ballot composition project" to recruit namesake candidates and split the vote against Dan Sullivan.Fox News · 28 Oct, 19:10
• Peltola campaign's alleged Dan Sullivan spoiler plot takes new turn as DOJ faces major legal hurdleThe Department of Justice's Alaska Senate race lawsuit faces hurdles as legal scholars debate whether anonymous ballot analysis can prove confusion.Fox News · 28 Oct, 18:40
• Peltola campaign aides, DSCC officials helped recruit second Dan Sullivan in Alaska race: NYTThe DOJ wants a judge to temporarily block certification of the Alaska Senate election if incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan loses due to voter confusion.CNBC · 28 Oct, 18:22
• Democrats' secret sabotage plot to seize Alaska Senate seat exposed: Operatives hunted for another Dan Sullivan to trick voters and even plotted to create a MAGA partyA staffer for Democratic hopeful Mary Peltola reportedly was instructed to find as many people with the name Dan Sullivan as possible, the Times reported.Daily Mail · 28 Oct, 18:11

In this story: Mary Peltola · Dan Sullivan · Daniel J. Sullivan · Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee · Department of Justice · Alaska

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log