Alaska blocks second Dan Sullivan from Senate primary ballot

Alaska election officials have ruled that a second Senate candidate named Dan Sullivan cannot appear on the state’s primary ballot, finding that his candidacy was filed to confuse voters in a closely watched race involving Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan.

Alaska Elections Director Carol Beecher said Monday that Daniel J. Sullivan, also identified as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., was ineligible for the Aug. 18 primary ballot. In a letter to the candidate, Beecher wrote that the “utterly unprecedented facts” led her to conclude his declaration of candidacy “was not filed in order to declare an actual good-faith candidacy for the office of United States senator, but was instead filed with a purpose to confuse or mislead and to thereby compromise the ballot’s fairness or neutrality.”

The candidate had filed to run as a Republican against incumbent Sen. Dan S. Sullivan, also a Republican. The filing drew objections from Republican officials, who accused the challenger of coordinating with Democratic interests to confuse voters ahead of a competitive Senate election. Former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola is expected to face the incumbent Sullivan in November.

Beecher cited several concerns in her decision. She wrote that Daniel J. Sullivan did not typically use the nickname “Dan,” had recently registered as a Republican, and at one point sought to file as “Dan Sullivan” despite not using that name to vote. CBS News reported that Beecher also said he tried to list “S” as his middle initial, matching the incumbent senator’s middle initial.

Beecher also pointed to similarities between the two campaign websites, writing that they suggested a “deliberate” appropriation of the incumbent’s campaign. She noted that Daniel J. Sullivan’s campaign consultant was a longtime Democratic Party supporter, including of Peltola.

“I conclude that the preponderance of the evidence is that you chose this new nickname and party affiliation because that name and party affiliation happen to be the name and party affiliation of another candidate in the race,” Beecher wrote.

The incumbent Sullivan had raised the issue with reporters at the Capitol earlier this month, accusing Democrats of being “complicit in trying to trick Alaskans” and trying to “rig an election in their favor.” The National Republican Senatorial Committee and Alaska Republicans pushed to remove Daniel J. Sullivan from the ballot, and Republican Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom opened an investigation into the candidacy last week. Beecher, a Republican, works in an office overseen by Dahlstrom.

Daniel J. Sullivan, a former teacher, has denied wrongdoing. He previously told The New York Times that election officials were seeking to “protect an incumbent senator from facing competition at the ballot box” and said he had not coordinated with Peltola. Peltola’s campaign has also denied coordinating with him.

In a prior response to Beecher’s office, Daniel J. Sullivan said the National Republican Senatorial Committee was using “your office as a pawn to kick me off the ballot.” He said he has long gone by Dan, registered as a Republican after his previous political party disbanded, and used photos of himself on his campaign website, adding that he looks nothing like the sitting senator.

“I am a qualified candidate who followed the rules and filed to run for office under my legal name,” he said in a campaign statement last week. “The people of Alaska are fully capable of deciding for themselves who should represent them in Washington. If Senator Sullivan believes he has served Alaska well during his 12 years in office, he should make that case directly to voters. He should not rely on government officials or legal maneuvers to limit who can challenge him.”

The Republican National Committee called the candidate “Decoy Dan” and praised the ruling. “Alaskans can rest easy that their leaders will never tolerate blatant attempts to mislead voters and rig elections like Democrats’ Decoy Dan Scam,” RNC Chairman Joe Gruters said. “This is the right decision that will protect Alaskans from an unprecedented attack on our democracy.”

Daniel J. Sullivan has 30 days to appeal the decision, according to CBS News. The Guardian reported that he can also challenge the determination in court, though primary ballots are set to print June 28.

Alaska uses a nonpartisan primary in which the top four finishers advance to a ranked-choice general election. The Senate race is expected to be one of the most competitive of the cycle as Democrats try to take control of the chamber, though CBS News noted that President Trump won Alaska by 13 points in 2024.