Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy warned that an alleged Democratic scheme to recruit a second "Dan Sullivan" into the state's pivotal Senate race exposed a deeper vulnerability in its election system, telling Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that his administration is investigating newly surfaced evidence just days before the midterms.
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administration → warn → midterms
Dunleavy said The New York Times uncovered details that state officials did not have when they initially challenged the second Sullivan's candidacy this past summer — including alleged involvement by operatives connected to Democratic nominee Mary Peltola.
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they → say → Peltola
The Republican argued Alaska's relatively new election system helped make the controversy possible, as state and federal authorities pursue separate investigations into potential wrongdoing.
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authorities → argue → wrongdoing
"This would have never happened if we didn't have ranked-choice voting," Dunleavy told Fox News Digital.
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Dunleavy → happen → Digital
"If this was a historical primary, a primary that our fathers and grandfathers had, this individual [retired schoolteacher Dan Sullivan of Petersburg] would not have gotten out of the primary."
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individual → have → primary
Dunleavy cited reporting that the Petersburg Sullivan initially denied having been recruited, but the Times found Peltola-connected operatives had worked to recruit spoilers named "Dan Sullivan" from around the state.
"
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operatives → cite → state
We're compelled to do an investigation on behalf of the people of Alaska, because as they say in Alaska, which is a big fish state, if you can smell the fish way far from the dock, you've got a real problem," Dunleavy said.
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Dunleavy → compel → problem
"And so, this really does stink."
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this → stink → ?
Alaska's election system advances the top four finishers from a nonpartisan primary to a general election in which voters rank candidates by preference.
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voters → advance → preference
Dunleavy argued that traditional party primaries would have prevented the second Sullivan from reaching November's ballot.
"
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primaries → argue → ballot
Our job as executives are to make sure that we can provide our people with an election that everyone could look at it and say that was done with integrity.
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that → make → integrity
And right now this cast, unfortunately, a pall over all of this," he said.
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he → cast → this
Dunleavy said the state's initial investigation in June after the Petersburg Sullivan surfaced ultimately led to the state Supreme Court, which allowed both Sullivans' names on the ballot, with Senator Sullivan marked "incumbent."
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Sullivan → say → ballot
"Initially, when [Petersburg Sullivan] contacted the Division of Elections, he wanted his name listed as Daniel S. Sullivan.
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name → contact → Sullivan
His website looked very, very, very similar to our incumbent senator.
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website → look → senator
And we went to court over this, and the Supreme Court of Alaska ruled that they were going to put his name on the ballot," he said.
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he → go → ballot
"We knew there was a problem, but the courts had decided.
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courts → know → ?
And then of course, the article comes out in the Times and there's a whole list of issues that we were never privy to.
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we → come → that
The new reporting identified contradictions in accounts of what transpired over the summer, including whether there was contact between Petersburg Sullivan and any campaigns.
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what → identify → Sullivan
"There's a lot more smoke and a lot of fishy smell after this article came out," he said.
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he → be → smell
In Alaska, elections are overseen by the lieutenant governor, not the governor, and Fox News Digital reached out to Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom for comment on whether or how her office is investigating.
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office → oversee → whether
The governor's office is in charge of making sure that there's execution of the laws.
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office → make → laws
That's what this investigation is going to look at to see if there were any violations of law or if there was a civil violation as well," Dunleavy added.
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Dunleavy → go → law
Peltola's campaign has denied involvement with either Sullivan campaign.
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campaign → deny → campaign
Peltola also dismissed the controversy as a distraction during a campaign appearance Wednesday, while the New York Times reported that operatives connected to her campaign participated in efforts to recruit potential spoiler candidates.
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operatives → dismiss → candidates
Fox News Digital reached out to Peltola for additional comment.
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Digital → reach → comment
Former FEC Chair Hans von Spakovsky told Fox News Digital that something investigators should look at is whether individuals paid by Peltola or another political organization were providing any "in-kind" services to the Petersburg Sullivan.
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individuals → tell → Sullivan
"In-kind services are considered a contribution to a campaign.
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services → consider → campaign
Failure to disclose such services is a violation of federal law.
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Failure → disclose → law
Also, if the fair market value of the services provided to the campaign exceeds the maximum contribution allowed to a federal candidate, that is also a violation of federal law.
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that → provide → law
If this was knowingly and intentionally done, it moves from being a civil violation to a criminal violation of the law," von Spakovsky said.
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Spakovsky → do → law
Von Spakovsky pointed to an FEC case involving socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign, which accepted campaign assistance from Australian Labor Party members whose travel expenses and stipends were paid by the foreign political organization.
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expenses → point → organization
The FEC determined that the arrangement constituted a prohibited $24,422 in-kind foreign contribution.
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arrangement → determine → contribution
Sanders' campaign and the Australian Labor Party each agreed to pay $14,500 in civil penalties to settle the matter without admitting liability.
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campaign → agree → liability
With Election Day approaching, the governor said the investigation would continue for as long as necessary, warning that the alleged effort could foreshadow new attempts to manipulate elections through misleading candidacies and other tactics.
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effort → approach → candidacies
Fox News Digital's Hannah Brennan contributed to this report.
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Brennan → contribute → report
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