The Alaska’s Senate race is poised to feature two prominent figures, Dan Sullivans and Mary Peltola, as the election draws near, a development that could significantly impact the outcome of the race, particularly for Mary Peltola’s effort to flip the seat. CNN’s Decision Desk projects that this matchup could benefit Democratic former Representative Mary Peltola’s campaign, given the current political landscape and the potential for a highly competitive contest.
While incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan and Peltola were considered locks to advance to the general election, the political scene has shifted with the emergence of Dan J. Sullivan, a newcomer securing a spot with just a few percentage points of the vote. Sullivan’s ascent reflects a long-held Republican sentiment in Alaska, where voters utilize a ranked-choice voting system in November. With two Dan Sullivans on the ballot, Republicans are increasingly concerned that newcomer Sullivan, who filed to run as a Republican, might confuse voters and divide the electorate, shaping up to be a fiercely competitive race.
To recapture the Senate, Democrats must secure a net gain of at least four seats in November, and the national party has invested heavily in this contest, aiming to defeat the incumbent. Early on, Sen. Sullivan accused Democratic leaders of strategically planting Sullivan in the race to mislead voters, urging Alaska state officials to remove his challenger’s name from the ballot, with the support of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Despite pressure from Director Carol Beecher, who concluded that Sullivan’s status as a Republican challenger was ineligible, the Petersburg man challenged the decision and ultimately took his case to the Alaska Supreme Court, which ordered officials to place him on the primary ballot. It was left up to the elections division to determine how he appeared on last week’s ballot.
The challenger was listed as Daniel J. Sullivan, Jr., with no mention of his party affiliation, on the ballot, while the sitting senator was listed as Dan S. Sullivan, with his status as the Republican incumbent noted. In making the case to disqualify Dan J. Sullivan, Republicans pointed to his past campaign contributions and the metadata of his campaign announcement, which ties the document to Amber Lee, a consultant who has publicly supported Peltola in the past. According to Federal Election Commission filings, either a Daniel or Dan Sullivan in Petersburg has donated $650 to ActBlue, the Democratic Party’s main fundraising platform, in recent years, including contributions earmarked for Peltola’s House campaigns in 2022 and 2024. There is no evidence of contributions to Republican campaigns from a Daniel or Dan Sullivan in Petersberg, FEC filings show.
Describing himself as a ‘pragmatic Republican centrist,’ Dan J. Sullivan told the Petersburg Pilot in June that he backs candidates in both parties, and even compared himself to Alaska’s other GOP senator, Lisa Murkowski, a swing vote in the Senate who is often at odds with President Donald Trump and out of favor with the base. The former fifth-grade teacher also appeared to confirm he enlisted Lee, contending he found her when looking up consultants online. Despite the scrutiny, the challenger insists his campaign is legitimate and has dismissed concerns that he would confuse the electorate.
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Source: CNN
