Alaska governor orders investigation into Peltola campaign over Sullivan hiring

Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy has ordered an investigation into whether the incumbent named Dan Sullivan violated criminal or civil law by allegedly running a candidate named Dan Sullivan for the state Senate.

Dunleavy’s order late Wednesday was in response to a New York Times report Wednesday that Democratic candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign officials and senior advisers to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee were lobbying for former teacher Dan Sullivan to run in order to garner votes from Sen. Dan Sullivan.

The incumbent senator, like Dunleavy, is a Republican.

Peltola’s campaign and DSCC responded to the Times article by saying they were not involved with retired teacher Sullivan’s campaign.

The governor’s order comes after a federal judge in Alaska granted Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC “to intervene in a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit seeking to prevent the state from immediately certifying Senate election results that could have been subject to voter confusion, pending an investigation to determine whether votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan were intended for Senator Sullivan.”

The campaign, DSCC and state election officials asked Judge Sharon Gleason to dismiss the lawsuit by Election Day, Nov. 3.

President Donald Trump said he has directed the Justice Department to file a lawsuit.

The political stakes in the Alaska Senate race are potentially significant. The winner of this contest could determine the balance of power in the Senate, where Republicans hold a six-vote majority.

In announcing his order, Dunleavy noted that the Alaska Department of Elections investigated concerns that the retired teacher’s participation in the Senate primary was intended to confuse voters, and that the agency blocked him from voting. A state court judge reversed that order, and the Alaska Supreme Court upheld the decision, allowing him to participate on the ballot.

“The new report substantially confirms the department’s findings,” Dunleavy said in a post to X.

“Therefore, I am directing the Department of Public Safety to investigate whether this plan violates Alaska law and whether criminal charges or civil litigation are warranted,” Dunleavy said. “The evidence will determine what happens next.”

“Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support,” he said. “Intentionally deceiving voters into voting for someone else undermines the integrity of our elections. People and organizations found to have violated the law must be held accountable.

In a statement to CNBC on Thursday following Dunleavy’s announcement, Peltola’s campaign said, “Mary joined this race because Alaskans deserve a champion who is fighting to cut costs and put Alaska first, and no tweet or threat from any politician will deter her from that fight. The Alaskan Campaign for Mary is not affiliated with either Sullivan campaign.”

Gleason late Wednesday ordered the Justice Department to respond by late Thursday afternoon to a motion to dismiss the lawsuit by Peltola’s campaign, the DSCC, the Alaska League of Women Voters and the advocacy group Common Cause, which the judge had also allowed to intervene in the case.

Gleason said the groups have until early Friday afternoon to submit responses to the Justice Department’s response.

Before flying to South Carolina for a campaign rally Thursday morning, President Trump was asked by reporters whether Senate Republicans should try to block Peltola from winning the seat in January if he wins Tuesday’s election.

President Trump said, “Well, we’ll have to see what happens.”

“It’s hard to believe that she would be allowed to run. Frankly, I don’t know how someone like that could be allowed to run,” the president said.

President Trump said Sullivan, a retired teacher, was “just put there as a fraud.”

“But people won’t know that, so no one will know what to do,” Trump said.

Both Mr. Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC have called the claims made by Mr. Trump and other Republicans about the Senate race hypocritical.

“Republicans have a long history of recruiting and fielding candidates to strengthen their campaigns, including recruiting a New York-domiciled prisoner to run for Mary Peltola and spending nearly $500,000 to secure an Alaskan ballot for an Arizona resident in this Senate election,” a DSCC spokesperson said Wednesday.

DSCC pointed to examples in the current and past election cycles where Republicans have pushed third-party or dark horse candidates to increase the chances of Republican candidates winning races.

Alaska election officials said in a court filing that the agency “took significant steps to distinguish” the two Sullivans on the ballot so that “voters could easily determine which candidate was which.”

The retired teacher’s name is spelled out on the ballot as “Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.” There are no other words next to it.

Immediately below Senator Sullivan’s name is written “Sullivan, Dan. S.” Next to his name are the words “Registered Republican, incumbent” in parentheses.

“The United States has no authority whatsoever to interfere in state elections, much less to support leading candidates,” Alaska state election officials said in a court filing.