Report: Peltola campaign under fire for recruiting second Sullivan in Alaska Senate race

Report describes candidate effort

The New York Times reported Wednesday that Peltola’s campaign helped recruit Dan J. Sullivan for the Alaska Senate race. The report said the effort to find a candidate who might take votes from incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan was internally called the “ballot composition project.”

Alaskans for Mary said it “has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.” The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee also said it was not involved with Dan J. Sullivan.

Dispute over the candidacy

Republicans have argued for months that Dan J. Sullivan was recruited to confuse Alaska voters and weaken support for the incumbent. Sen. Sullivan’s campaign spokesperson, Nate Adams, accused Peltola and her campaign of misleading voters.

Alaska courts considered the dispute and found no illegality in Dan J. Sullivan’s candidacy. They did, however, find that the bid might not have been entirely in good faith or could have been intended to confuse voters. The Times reported that ballot-stacking tactics are common in politics and widely considered legal.

Political and legal response

President Donald Trump said Peltola should face legal and political consequences and called for her and Dan J. Sullivan to be removed from the ballot. He also accused Peltola of election fraud.

The Justice Department has an active criminal investigation into the circumstances of Dan J. Sullivan’s candidacy, ABC News has reported. ABC News sought comment from his campaign and the Alaska Department of Elections.

Earlier statements questioned

The Times also reported that Rios later asked the newspaper to retract statements she had provided. She did not explain why she made the request. The DSCC cited a separate 2024 House race, saying Alaska Republicans supported an effort to keep a Democratic candidate who was an inmate in a New York federal prison on the ballot against Peltola.