Alaska Election Dispute: Trump Administration Sues Over Candidate Names

President Donald Trump’s administration sued last week to pause the certification of potential Alaska Democratic Senate winner Mary Peltola. The legal action seeks to determine if voters were confused by a ballot that included two candidates with the name Daniel J. Sullivan. One is the Republican incumbent, Sen. Dan Sullivan, and the other is a retired school teacher, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., who has barely campaigned. The Justice Department issued a series of subpoenas in a criminal investigation after the New York Times reported that internal texts showed the Peltola campaign recruited the second Sullivan.

Peltola, who announced her Senate run in January 2026, has denied involvement in the scheme. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has also rejected the claims. The practice of using a candidate with the same name as an opponent has a long history in American politics. It dates back to at least 1946, when a Boston city councilman named Joe Russo ran against a janitor of the same name in a Democratic primary. That race ultimately went to John F. Kennedy.

Critics argue that the current Justice Department is acting as a political tool. Justin Levitt, a law professor at Loyola Marymount University who served in the Biden administration, stated that while the tactic is common, no disclosed behavior violates federal law. He noted that campaigns frequently recruit or boost such spoiler candidates. In contrast, Jason Torchinsky, a Republican campaign finance attorney, said the reporting suggests possible crimes related to financing the second Sullivan’s entry onto the ballot. He emphasized that Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system makes this manipulation easier because anyone can join the primary ballot with a $100 filing fee.

Trump’s own political network has employed similar tactics in other races. In Ohio, a group tied to the president is urging voters to support a socialist candidate to drain votes from the Democrat challenging the Republican incumbent. In Nevada, a Republican-linked operation is boosting an independent candidate named Danielle Ford, who shares a last name with the Democratic governor’s challenger. In 2020 in Florida, a second Alex Rodriguez won 6,382 votes as an independent, contributing to the loss of Democratic Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez by 32 votes. A former state senator involved in that effort was later sentenced to 60 days in jail for falsifying documents.

Alaska Republicans have long suspected the second Sullivan was a Democratic plant. Sullivan’s campaign is urging voters to rank both Sullivans above Peltola. Defenders of the state’s voting system argue it is resilient because voters can strategically rank candidates to avoid their preferred opponent. David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, expects a judge to soon reject the Justice Department’s lawsuit as frivolous. The next step is the court’s decision on the certification pause.