Election law expert on 2 Dan Sullivans in Alaska, DOJ bid to force California to set aside ballots

As of November 1, 2026, Republican Senator Dan Sullivan accused his Democratic opponent Mary Peltola of lying about her campaign's involvement in recruiting a candidate named Dan J. Sullivan, who shares the same name as the incumbent but is not actively campaigning for the seat. According to an October 28 report by The New York Times, Peltola’s team and senior officials from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) were involved in a secret effort to recruit spoiler candidates against Sullivan, including a candidate who shares his name. This has led Trump to demand Alaska change its ballot due to claims that Democrats illegally recruited Dan J. Sullivan onto the ballot to confuse voters, potentially affecting control of the Senate.

The controversy intensified with Sullivan warning on November 1st during an interview with CNN’s "State of the Union" that he might lose votes due to this alleged scheme. Peltola’s campaign maintains its innocence and disputes these claims, leading to a back-and-forth between both sides over who is responsible for the confusion among voters regarding Dan J. Sullivan's candidacy.