Republican Senator Dan Sullivan has condemned what he called a “secret scheme to trick” voters after a second candidate named Dan Sullivan appeared on Alaska’s ballot. President Donald Trump described the alleged effort as “voter fraud at the highest level.”
The Alaska Senate race, pitting Trump-backed incumbent Sullivan against former Representative Mary Peltola and another Dan Sullivan, has evolved into an extraordinary fight for political control.
Republicans have accused the second candidate of being a liberal plant designed to siphon votes from the incumbent. They have dubbed him “Decoy Dan.”
The New York Times reported that interviews, text messages and documents indicated Peltola’s team had tried to recruit not just one, but multiple people named Dan Sullivan in an effort to improve her prospects.
Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) have both denied the accusations.
Speaking on Fox News on Wednesday night, however, Sullivan alleged that “Mary Peltola, her campaign team, senior DSCC Democrats had a secret scheme to trick Alaskan voters.”
“This is something that we’ve been wondering about, but the Democrats have been scheming for a year-and-a-half,” he said during an appearance on Hannity.
“And then Sean… they’ve been lying for almost a year about it, and now they’re caught.”
Sullivan also accused Peltola of refusing to address the controversy and called on her to answer questions about whether her campaign had been involved.
“Even today, she has not apologized,” Sullivan said. “Even today, she’s kind of playing as if nothing happened.”
Republican Senator Dan Sullivan condemned what he called a “secret scheme to trick” voters after a second candidate with the same name appeared on Alaska’s ballot
A New York Times investigation reported that staffers for Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola recruited other people named Dan Sullivan in an effort to strengthen her chances of winning
He alleged that Peltola and her allies had spent more than a year “scheming in a secret operation to trick Alaskans” and persuade them to “throw away their vote.”
“It’s an outrage,” he said.
The senator further suggested that senior Democrats in Washington, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and US Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, may have been connected to the alleged effort.
Asked whether he intended to pursue additional legal action, Sullivan said his “focus right now is campaigning and getting out the vote,” adding that the priority was to tell Alaskans, “do not be tricked.”
Sullivan said he would campaign through Election Day while monitoring legal developments. Federal prosecutors have said they are conducting an “aggressive criminal investigation” into how a second candidate named Dan Sullivan qualified for the ballot.
Trump, meanwhile, labeled the alleged operation “voter fraud at the highest level” while rallying support for Republicans in Ohio.
“That’s what they’re good at—cheating,” the president added, referring to Democrats.
Trump had previously said Peltola should withdraw from the race and called for both her and the Democratic Party to “be prosecuted.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump also said Peltola should “suffer the legal and political consequences for what she has done, a fraud on the American public.”
“Dan Sullivan should be allowed to run without either Mary Peltola or fake Dan Sullivan on the ballot,” he wrote.
President Donald Trump called the alleged operation “voter fraud at the highest level” while rallying support for Republicans in Ohio
The image shows Trump-backed Republican Senator Dan Sullivan, left, in Palmer, Alaska, on August 17, 2026, alongside another candidate named Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s Senate race
A sample ballot in Anchorage, Alaska, lists both candidates named Dan Sullivan
According to the Times, a Peltola staffer was instructed to identify as many people named Dan Sullivan as possible as part of the alleged operation.
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By spring, a retired teacher from a small fishing village had announced his candidacy for the Senate under the name Dan Sullivan.
The two candidates are distinguished only by their middle initials. The incumbent, whom Trump calls the “real” Dan Sullivan, is Dan S Sullivan, while the candidate known as “Decoy Dan” is Dan J Sullivan.
The initiative was reportedly called the Ballot Composition Project. It allegedly involved a “mysterious Midwestern operative” who traveled through Alaska recruiting potential candidates, sometimes socializing with them in local pubs.
Lawyers associated with the Peltola campaign and senior DSCC staffers were also reportedly involved, according to the investigation.
The report said Democrats even explored creating a new political party in an attempt to attract Republican voters.
A Peltola campaign spokesperson rejected the allegations in a statement to The Hill.
“Mary got in this race because Alaskans deserve a champion who is fighting to lower their costs and put Alaska first, and no tweet or threat from any DC politician will keep her away from that fight,” the spokesperson said. They added: “The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.”
The DSCC also said in a separate statement that it had “no involvement” in efforts to place a second Dan Sullivan on the ballot.
The candidate known as “Decoy Dan” announced his campaign in the spring and is pictured in July
The “decoy” candidate’s campaign website describes him as a Republican US Senate candidate
Trump has also directed the Justice Department to sue Alaska in an extraordinary attempt to block certification of the state’s Senate election results if the incumbent is defeated.
The contest remains close. A Data for Progress poll conducted from October 8 to 16 showed Peltola ahead of Sullivan by 51 percent to 49 percent.
The new allegations could alter the race’s trajectory and represent another major challenge for Peltola, who faced a further setback last Sunday.
The Democrat and members of her family were injured in an overnight car crash, disrupting her midterm campaign once again.
That same day, Our News Outlet reported on another painful chapter in Peltola’s personal life: She lost both her mother and her husband within four months in 2023.
Peltola’s campaign has denied any involvement in the alleged ballot operation
Earlier this month, Trump made another promise aimed at bolstering Sullivan’s re-election prospects, pledging $5,000 for every adult American if Republicans retain control of both chambers of Congress in November—but with a condition.
During a speech in Alaska, Trump said he would give “all adult citizens in the United States $5,000” if Republicans held both chambers of Congress.
“You’ve got to spend it in the United States of America,” the president said. “I don’t want you going to China.”
The pledge came as the rising cost of living in Alaska emerged as a central issue in the unusual Senate contest.
In late August, a store in Shungnak, a village in northwestern Alaska, drew national attention after reporting that regular gasoline had reached $26.82 per gallon.
“Just yesterday, the price was $13.99, but now it is $26.82,” Douglas told the Alaska Beacon.
Peltola also recently shared photographs from a rural Alaska grocery store showing 12 rolls of paper towels priced at up to $40.99 and a pack of paper plates selling for $53.99.
Fish could also play a decisive role in the election. Peltola has built her campaign around the slogan “Fish, Family, Freedom,” highlighting fisheries as one of Alaska’s most contentious political issues.
The Native American candidate grew up salmon fishing with her father and supports banning large out-of-state trawlers. She has also called for stronger financial protections for local fishermen.
Sullivan, meanwhile, has made opposition to unregulated foreign seafood fleets operating in Alaska waters and selling into US markets a central part of his campaign.
