The New York Times has the story.
Aware residents of the vast state of Alaska may have noticed that the ballot lists two candidates named Dan Sullivan for the Senate: the sitting Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan and Dan J. Sullivan, a complete unknown who isn’t actively campaigning for the seat.
The motive seemed obvious: the imposter Sullivan was trying to siphon votes away from the real Sullivan in hopes of aiding the actual challenger, Democrat Mary Peltola. But while it was clear who stood to gain from this ruse, the manner in which everything was arranged remained unclear—until now.
The rumors appear to be true: political operatives working closely with the Peltola campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) explicitly recruited the other Sullivan, according to explosive reporting by The New York Times. All deny involvement, but the Times has them dead to rights:
The Times has found, based on interviews and text messages, along with documents prepared for a potential lawsuit against the campaign, that not only did Ms. Peltola’s team work with people trying to recruit Mr. Sullivan to run for Senate, but the effort was much broader. The group worked to coax other would-be spoilers into the race, to dilute the incumbent’s support and help catapult the Democrat to victory.
The campaign consulted with Jerid Kurtz, a Democratic operative, to locate and recruit Sullivan, a retired teacher. Kurtz even traveled to Sullivan’s far-flung Alaskan village and personally persuaded him to run. Sullivan said he had no interest in becoming a politician, but he detested President Donald Trump and was eager to assist Democrats in winning the Senate.
Elisa Rios, Peltola’s former campaign manager, openly admitted all of this to the Times, arguing that voters deserved to know the truth; reading between the lines, it seems she may have been a disgruntled former employee. However, she reconsidered before publication and asked the Times to disregard her interview. The Times reasonably declined. In any case, numerous other staffers confirmed her account.
The Justice Department under Trump has filed suit, claiming that the presence of the other Sullivan on the ballot would render the election illegitimate if Peltola wins. It seems unlikely the administration will prevail on that argument, and such tactics are far from novel.
They remain deeply contemptible, nonetheless. Peltola, who was fully aware of the scheme, appears to be trying to persuade the people of Alaska to vote for the wrong candidate in order to improve her own chances. Perhaps that isn’t quite as vile as Vivek Ramaswamy’s ad about Amy Acton, but it is equally despicable—and far more likely to undermine the integrity of the election. Ramaswamy’s actions drew significant bipartisan backlash; will Democrats who insist that democracy itself is on the ballot speak up and condemn this?
