Alaska Governor Orders Probe Into Dual Sullivan Candidates

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy ordered an investigation into alleged election manipulation on Thursday. The probe follows reports that two candidates named Dan Sullivan appear on the state's ballot for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Republican Dan S. Sullivan.

The controversy centers on Democratic candidate Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman. The New York Times reported that her campaign staff attempted to recruit a candidate with the same name as the incumbent. While the effort was not illegal, it prompted scrutiny from state and federal officials.

The timeline of events began when both men were placed on the ballot. Daniel J. Sullivan appears on the list without any modifiers. Daniel S. Sullivan is listed with the labels incumbent and Republican next to his name. Alaska's highest state court had previously ruled that both men should remain on the ballot despite the identical first and last names.

Republican leaders quickly moved to criticize the Peltola campaign. President Donald Trump called the situation a fraud while departing for South Carolina on Thursday. He stated that the move was done in conjunction with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Trump described the incident as voter fraud that should not have been allowed to happen.

Vice President JD Vance echoed these sentiments later that day. He called the situation disgraceful and suggested the voters of Alaska would punish Peltola for a great moral failing. Peltola's campaign responded with a statement saying it had no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.

Federal oversight is also expanding. Rep. James Comer, chair of the House Oversight Committee, announced Thursday that he is launching a separate investigation. He issued a letter requesting in-person testimony from key Peltola staffers next week. Comer wants to determine if the campaign tried to intentionally confuse voters.

Alaska voters will cast ballots in the midterm elections on Tuesday. The state uses ranked choice voting for its elections. If no candidate wins a majority in the Senate race after the initial count, the ranked choices will be tallied to determine the winner.