The Alaskan Supreme Court issued a shocking decision Monday evening that will allow a Democrat-recruited sham candidate to appear on the upcoming ballot against Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan.
🚨 The Alaska Supreme Court has upheld a lower court order requiring election officials to restore U.S. Senate candidate Dan J. Sullivan Jr. to the primary ballot, rejecting the state's effort to keep him off in response to claims that he ran to confuse voters. pic.twitter.com/4oMF7SlCTW
— SCOTUS Wire (@scotus_wire) June 29, 2026
The decision ultimately reversed an order by the Alaskan Division of Elections after an investigation found that Daniel J. Sullivan entered the race with the intention of confusing voters in hope of harming the legitimate Dan Sullivan. Sullivan refused to supply any evidence in his defense to investigators despite their requests.
In his filing, the bogus Sullivan falsely claimed that he had been a “life-long Republican” despite only affiliating with the party two days before submitting his application to run for office. His filing also requested that the list him as “Dan S. Sullivan,” in an attempt to switch his middle initial to that of the incumbent. A well-known supporter of Democrat Mary Peltola has even served as his consultant, who, after the scam was discovered, appeared to flee the country.
Republican officials and leaders have heavily criticized the Court’s decision to allow the bogus candidate to remain on the ballot.
“Mary Peltola is desperately rigging Alaska's U.S. Senate race with her deceptive scheme because Peltola knows she will never beat Senator Sullivan on his Alaska First record,” said NRSC Regional Press Secretary Nick Puglia in a press release. “Peltola, her cronies, and her supporter, Fraud Sullivan, continue showing disgusting levels of contempt for Alaskans."
“We're disappointed in the court's decision because as the sham candidate Dan J. Sullivan's lawyers made clear in their legal arguments, the only reason he is running is to deceive voters and manipulate Alaska's election system,” Sen. Sullivan spokesman Nate Adams said in a release. “However, we are encouraged by the fact that the Director of the Division of Elections will be able to use her expertise to differentiate between the Petersburg fraud and the incumbent — Senator Dan Sullivan — to the benefit of Alaska voters."
Whether the court's ruling ultimately affects the outcome of the race remains to be seen, but the underhanded tactics from Alaskan Democrats already ignited a fierce debate over election integrity, candidate eligibility, and voter deception in Alaska in one of the most-watched races this cycle.