Operatives associated with Democrat Mary Peltola’s Senate campaign reportedly sought candidates who could draw votes away from Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, including another man with the same name, according to an investigation published days before Alaska’s midterm election.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Operatives working with Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mary Peltola reportedly spent months attempting to recruit additional candidates into Alaska’s Senate race, including another man named Dan Sullivan, as part of an effort to draw votes away from Republican incumbent Sen. Dan S. Sullivan.
An investigation published Wednesday by The New York Times described an operation involving campaign advisers, Democratic political operatives and discussions about establishing a conservative political party to attract voters who might otherwise support the Republican senator.
The newspaper based its findings on interviews with 12 people, dozens of text messages and documents prepared for a potential lawsuit involving Peltola’s campaign.
The operation, reportedly known internally as the “ballot composition project,” began in summer 2025, when a Peltola staff member was instructed to search Alaska voter records for individuals named Dan Sullivan.
According to the investigation, the objective was to identify someone whose appearance on the ballot could create confusion with the incumbent Republican senator.
Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher from Petersburg with no previous political experience, subsequently entered the race.
He has maintained that he decided to run independently and has denied allegations that his candidacy was coordinated with Democrats.
Peltola’s campaign also denied recruiting candidates.
“The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign and did not recruit any candidates into the race,” the campaign said in a statement to the Times.
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee likewise denied participating in the recruitment of Sullivan or other Republican candidates.
A central source for the investigation was Elisa Rios, Peltola’s former campaign manager, who was dismissed during an August campaign restructuring.
Rios told the Times that Peltola was not directly involved in the recruitment operation but was “definitely aware” of the effort.
“Alaskan voters need to know,” Rios said. “There was a lot of speculation, and voters should get the full picture when making their decisions.”
However, Rios later attempted to retract her statements and told the newspaper she no longer wanted to participate in the investigation.
The Times reported that her earlier accounts were consistent with other information gathered during its reporting.
Rios had also considered pursuing a wrongful termination lawsuit against the campaign, although no such lawsuit had been filed when the investigation was published.
The newspaper identified Ohio political operative Jerid Kurtz as a central participant in the alleged recruitment effort.
According to Rios, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee aides introduced Kurtz to her and Anton McParland, then Peltola’s chief of staff.
Kurtz reportedly traveled through Alaska while using another name to approach prospective candidates.
One individual, Anchorage resident Matthew Salisbury, told the Times that a man identifying himself as Zane approached him about running for Senate and discussed the possibility of outside financial support.
Salisbury subsequently identified Kurtz from a photograph as the man who approached him. He did not enter the race.
Kurtz did not respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment.
The investigation also examined discussions involving political consultants and Democratic strategists about supporting additional candidates who could appeal to conservative voters.
Those conversations reportedly included the possibility of establishing a new right-wing political party.
The effort extended beyond the recruitment of another Sullivan to broader questions about which candidates would appear on Alaska’s general-election ballot.
Following the August primary, Democrat David Leslie withdrew from the Senate contest, leaving Peltola as the only Democratic candidate among four finalists.
The withdrawal opened a position for Gerald Heikes, another candidate identified with Republican politics.
Under Alaska’s election system, the four candidates receiving the most votes in the nonpartisan primary advance to the general election, where voters may rank candidates in order of preference.
The Times also examined outside political spending connected to the race.
Federal campaign finance records showed that 49th State PAC, which supports Peltola, paid approximately $87,000 this fall to Wingspan Strategies, a consulting firm co-owned by Kurtz.
The political action committee denied hiring or paying Kurtz personally for services.
Political consultant Jim Lottsfeldt also disputed portions of Rios’ account, including allegations concerning discussions about supporting additional candidates.
The findings emerge amid an ongoing legal dispute over Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.’s place on the ballot.
Earlier this year, Alaska election officials initially determined that his candidacy was not filed in good faith and attempted to remove him from the election.
In a June 15 administrative determination, state officials concluded that the similarity between his name and the incumbent’s appeared intended to confuse voters.
However, Alaska courts rejected the removal, and the state Supreme Court upheld a decision allowing Sullivan Jr. to remain a candidate.
The final ballot distinguishes Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan from Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., who appears without a party affiliation.
The controversy intensified last week when the Justice Department filed a federal lawsuit seeking to prevent certification of the Senate election under certain circumstances if the Republican incumbent loses.
President Donald Trump subsequently confirmed that he personally directed the administration to pursue the lawsuit.
The administration argues that the presence of two candidates with similar names could undermine voter confidence and compromise the election.
Peltola has condemned the federal intervention, characterizing it as an attempt to interfere with Alaska’s election.
According to Alaska Public Media, attorneys for Peltola and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have sought to intervene in the case and dismiss the Justice Department’s claims.
They argue that the federal government lacks authority to prevent certification under the legal provisions cited in its complaint.
Alaska’s Republican-led state government has also asked a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit, disputing the Justice Department’s authority to intervene in the state’s election certification process.
The Associated Press reported that the legal dispute centers on whether confusion between the similarly named candidates could influence the outcome.
Under ranked-choice voting, ballots can be transferred to subsequent choices when lower-ranked candidates are eliminated, making the practical consequences of any first-choice confusion dependent on how voters rank the candidates.
No court has established that Peltola personally directed an unlawful recruitment scheme, and the Times investigation does not establish that every candidate approached was recruited successfully.
Nevertheless, the reported communications and firsthand accounts provide new details about political operatives’ efforts to influence the composition of Alaska’s Senate ballot.
The revelations arrive less than a week before the Nov. 3 election, with voters preparing to choose among Peltola, the Republican incumbent and two other candidates.
The investigation adds another dimension to the dispute over Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.’s candidacy, raising questions about the recruitment effort while leaving unresolved the extent of Peltola’s personal involvement and whether any campaign laws were violated.
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