Headline Roundup • October 28th, 2026
DOJ Sues Over Alaska Senate Race Featuring Two Candidates Named Dan Sullivan
2026 Midterm Elections,Alaska,Senate,Senate Elections,Justice Department,Election Interference,Election Integrity
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Two people named Dan Sullivan are running for senate in Alaska's midterm election, prompting a lawsuit from the Justice Department and speculation that this was an attempt to bolster the Democratic candidate's chances of winning.
The Details: Alaska Sen. Dan S. Sullivan, a Republican, is running for reelection against several candidates, including Dan J. Sullivan, who has no party affiliation. The Democratic candidate on the ticket is Mary Peltola. Though Peltola has denied allegations of involvement in his candidacy, New York Times (Lean Left bias) reported that her team recruited Sullivan to run and tried to coax other candidates into the race as well, based on interviews, text messages, and lawsuit documents the outlet reviewed.
Accusations of Interference: Peltola's former campaign manager Elisa Rios, who was fired in August, told The Times that Peltola was "definitely aware" of her team's involvement in recruiting Sullivan, though she was not directly involved. The Hill (Center) reported on Peltola's campaign's response to the investigation, citing the statement, "The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign and did not recruit any candidates into the race." The Hill also noted that ballot stacking is a common practice and reported that "both parties have recruited fringe candidates this cycle and in previous years, hoping to siphon off votes."
DOJ Lawsuit and Controversy: The Justice Department sued Alaska election officials and asked a judge to prevent certification of the results if the incumbent Dan S. Sullivan loses due to votes for the unaffiliated Dan J. Sullivan. Fox News (Right) reported the DOJ's filing, which said, "The sole purpose of his candidacy is to benefit the Peltola campaign by reducing the number of votes for Senator Sullivan." Fox also highlighted criticism of Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), whom the outlet called "one of Trump's most prominent adversaries." Schiff accused the DOJ of trying to use its lawsuit to subvert the election, saying, "They don't have standing to bring this kind of a suit. It's not the federal government's business to run Alaskan elections. It's Alaska's business to do that…it just shows how complicit they are now in the Trump campaign to try to subvert the elections."
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Featured Coverage of this Story
Haven Daley/Associated Press
In the summer of 2025, a staffer for Mary Peltola, the Alaska Democrat who was eyeing a run for Senate, received unusual instructions from top campaign aides: Find as many people named Dan Sullivan in Alaska as you can.
The staffer complied, combing through voter records to produce a list of Dan Sullivans from across the state.
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., accused President Donald Trump's Justice Department of trying to subvert elections through its lawsuit over Alaska's unusual Senate ballot, even as Republicans allege Democrats have propped up a Senate candidate with the same name as the GOP nominee to confuse voters.
Sen. Dan S. Sullivan, R- Alaska, is running against Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., who has no party affiliation. State courts ultimately allowed the second Dan Sullivan to remain on the ballot. Schiff argued the Justice Department has no business stepping into a matter Alaska's courts...
Democrat Mary Peltola's Senate campaign and national Democrats are denying a new investigation from The New York Times reporting that they worked together to recruit candidates in an effort to pull votes from Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in Alaska.
The Times report, published Wednesday, cites 12 sources and references text messages and documents showing that Peltola campaign aides, the campaign's lawyers and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) staffers were involved in pushing other candidates, including Daniel J. Sullivan, to run.
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