Alaska Gov. Dunleavy Orders a State Investigation After the NYT Report on Democrat-Linked Efforts to Recruit Spoiler Candidates, Including a Second Dan Sullivan
Fox News reports the Republican governor has told the Department of Public Safety to look into whether the scheme broke state law. The Peltola campaign says it recruited no one and had no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.
Alaska's governor has opened a state-level inquiry into the ballot story that has dominated the closing days of the Senate race, Fox News reports.
The order. Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, said on X that the New York Times reporting "reveals disturbing new evidence of an organized effort to manipulate Alaska's elections." He wrote that the Alaska Division of Elections looked into these concerns in June and that the new reporting "substantially supports the Division's findings." He said he is directing the Department of Public Safety to investigate "whether this scheme violated Alaska's laws and whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted," and added: "The evidence will determine what happens next."
The background. The Times article, headlined "Inside Democrats' Secret Effort to Stack Alaska's Ballot," says Mary Peltola's team worked with people trying to recruit Sullivan to run, and that the effort was "much broader," coaxing other would-be spoilers into the race to dilute the incumbent's support under ranked-choice voting. Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan is on the ballot. So is Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher listed with no party.
The other side. The Peltola campaign told the Times: "The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign and did not recruit any candidates into the race." Fox says the campaign did not answer its request for comment Thursday.
Sullivan's response. On Hannity Wednesday night, the senator said Peltola has "nothing to run on" and that "even today, she has not apologized." He said Alaskans, once they see it, will conclude the other side figured "I guess we got to cheat."
The court fight. On Oct. 22 the Justice Department filed a federal suit asking to delay certification if Sullivan loses and votes for Daniel J. Sullivan could have changed the result, pending an investigation into whether voters picked the wrong name by mistake.
Note for readers: the scheme is alleged. The governor is a Republican, and he is ordering a review, not announcing findings. Fox does not report any charge. Peltola's campaign denies recruiting anyone, and we have not seen the Times's documents ourselves.