Mike Dunleavy Orders Criminal Probe Into Mary Peltola Campaign Over Second Dan Sullivan on Alaska Ballot as Donald Trump Demands Prosecution
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy has ordered a state investigation into whether the Senate campaign of Democrat Mary Peltola broke Alaska law by helping recruit a second candidate named Dan Sullivan — a retired teacher whose name matches that of the Republican incumbent, Senator Dan Sullivan — in one of the most closely watched races of the 2026 midterm elections.
Dunleavy announced the order on Wednesday night, October 28, directing the Alaska Department of Public Safety to examine whether the alleged effort violated state law and whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted. "The evidence will determine what happens next," the governor wrote in a post on X, adding that Alaskans have a right to cast ballots for the candidate they actually meant to support.
The New York Times report behind the probe
The governor's order followed a New York Times investigation published October 28. According to that reporting, interviews, text messages and documents indicated that people connected to the Peltola campaign and senior aides at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) helped recruit retired Petersburg teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. to enter the race, as part of what the report described as a "ballot composition project" to recruit spoiler candidates.
Republicans argue the move was designed to split the vote of the incumbent Dan Sullivan and confuse voters. President Donald Trump weighed in on Wednesday, telling reporters that Peltola and the other Sullivan "should be prosecuted," and has previously accused Democrats of putting an impostor on the ballot and called for Peltola to be removed from the ballot.
Denials — and what the probe is not
Peltola's campaign has denied any involvement. In a statement cited in the reporting, the campaign said it "has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign." The DSCC has also denied involvement, and Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. himself has said he had no contact with the Peltola campaign. An earlier Anchorage Daily News report from May had already recorded the campaign's denial that it solicited him.
No one has been charged with anything as a result of the governor's order, the ballot has not changed, and the allegations have not been tested in court. The Times itself noted that "ballot stacking" — encouraging extra candidates to split an opponent's vote — is common in politics and generally legal, a caveat that will matter as investigators decide whether any Alaska law was actually broken.
Five days before the vote
The timing raises the stakes: Alaska's general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026, and early voting has already begun, with about one in ten registered Alaskans reported to have voted already. The Alaska Senate contest will help decide control of Congress, and the race was already the subject of a separate federal lawsuit over certification, after the Justice Department sued to block certification if the incumbent Dan Sullivan loses.
For now, the probe is an investigation, not a verdict. What Dunleavy's investigators find — and whether prosecutors see a crime where campaigns see hardball politics — will decide whether the "two Dan Sullivans" saga ends as a ballot curiosity or as a criminal case days before Americans vote.