Alaska Election Official Blocks Ballot for Senate Challenger

Washington — Daniel J. Sullivan, a candidate for the Senate in Alaska with the same name as Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, has been declared ineligible to appear on the state’s primary ballot. An Alaska election official made this determination on Monday, citing a deliberate effort to confuse voters.

Earlier this month, Daniel J. Sullivan announced his candidacy, leading to confusion and concern among Republicans as the August primary approaches. Elections Director Carol Beecher concluded that the candidate’s entry into the race was intended to mislead voters, compromising the ballot’s fairness.

‘Sullivan’s candidacy was not a good-faith effort to declare for the office of United States Senator,’ Beecher wrote in a letter, noting attempts to file under the name ‘Dan Sullivan,’ despite never using that name to vote.

Beecher highlighted efforts by Daniel J. Sullivan to adopt the incumbent senator’s middle initial ‘S’ and noted similarities between their campaign websites, pointing to a deliberate appropriation of the sitting senator’s campaign.

Sen. Dan Sullivan addressed reporters earlier this month, accusing Democrats of being complicit in misleading Alaskans to rig the election. The National Republican Senatorial Committee and Alaska Republicans have called for Daniel J. Sullivan’s removal from the ballot.

Republican Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom initiated an investigation into Daniel J. Sullivan’s candidacy last week. Beecher revealed that Sullivan’s political consultant has connections to the Democratic Party and Sen. Sullivan’s Democratic challenger, former Rep. Mary Peltola.

Daniel J. Sullivan has 30 days to appeal the decision. The Alaska Senate race is predicted to be one of the most contested of the cycle, as Democrats aim to flip the seat for chamber control. Despite this, it is likely to be a challenging task in a state where President Trump won by a margin of 13 points in 2024.

Kaia Hubbard contributed to this report.