2026 Alaska Senate race
One page that accretes the verified record as the story develops. Every fact keeps its date and its sources.
Trump DOJ sends target letters to Democrats in Alaska Senate criminal probe
Elias said the investigation is a sham and that his firm will not be intimidated.
The Justice Department has sent at least twenty target letters and preservation notices to individuals as part of a criminal investigation into the Alaska U.S. Senate race.
The investigation accelerated after The New York Times detailed alleged efforts by Democrats and some in Mary Peltola's campaign to recruit Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher, to be on the ballot with incumbent Republican Dan S. Sullivan.
Opinion: Spoiler candidates and Trump targeting Peltola (Petala Ironcloud)
The Alaska state supreme court refused to remove the other Sullivan from the ballot.
The author Petala Ironcloud is an enrolled member of the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes.
The justice department sued to block the certification of Alaska's US Senate race at Donald Trump's behest.
DOJ set to appeal ruling in Alaska Senate race dispute over 'Decoy Dan'
U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason said the government had not shown how the requested investigation could identify voters' intent while protecting ballot secrecy.
Sen. Sullivan said he would accept the results of Tuesday's election.
A federal judge dismissed the Justice Department's lawsuit seeking to delay certification of Alaska's Senate election.
Judge tosses DOJ lawsuit seeking to block Alaska election results if Sen. Dan Sullivan loses
Gleason ruled that the DOJ failed to demonstrate how its proposed remedy could address potential voter confusion without compromising ballot secrecy.
Judge Gleason was appointed by Obama.
Gleason dismissed the case on the procedural issue of standing.
“But because there were federal violations, eventually the Supreme Court weighed in and stopped it, And at no point in time had the vice president’s (Albert Gore) vote count ever surpassed that of the governor (Bush) and because it was a federal interest, the Supreme Court stepped in and stopped this counting at the state level.”
Alaska Sen. Sullivan accepts election results, criticizes Peltola campaign recruiting 2nd Sullivan
The New York Times reported that Peltola's campaign was directly involved with recruiting Dan J. Sullivan, a retired schoolteacher, to run as a spoiler.
Alaska's Senate race is rated as a "toss-up" by the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter.
Peltola said she has won statewide before on her own merits without any tricks.
“I think a lot of Alaskans, even Democrats, are thinking she is not fit for office; she's continually lying to the Alaskan people, and I guarantee you she's lying right now.”
Judge dismisses Alaska Senate election lawsuit; DOJ vows appeal
DSCC Executive Director Devan Barber called the ruling a victory for democracy.
A federal judge dismissed the Department of Justice's lawsuit seeking to delay certification of the Alaska Senate election if incumbent Republican Dan Sullivan loses.
President Donald Trump said he ordered the lawsuit, which was filed Oct. 22.
“I think a lot of Alaskans, even Democrats, are thinking she is not fit for office; she's continually lying to the Alaskan people, and I guarantee you she's lying right now.”
Alaska election report challenges Democrats' democracy threat warnings
The New York Times investigation relied on text messages it obtained as well as interviews with former campaign staffers.
Iowa Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rob Sand said both parties are engaging in tactics of confusing voters and neither party should be doing it.
The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Alaska on Oct. 22 seeking to delay certification of the state's Senate election if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses and votes cast for the other Sullivan could have changed the outcome.
Alaska outpost residents affected by Trump's policies
Republicans in Congress approved legislation ending funding for public media outlets.
Unalaska is located further west than the Hawaiian islands and is closer to Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul than Washington DC.
Unalaska's public library received a yearly grant from the IMLS to buy books, and librarian Karen Kresh had expected $6,000 before being told the money would not be coming.
“I didn’t want to, but I kind of have to, otherwise I’m going to become a charity.”
Trump prosecutions under Biden cited as precedent for DOJ Alaska probe
The Alaska Supreme Court rejected the state's push to disqualify Daniel J. Sullivan from appearing on the ballot.
Daniel J. Sullivan is a retired school teacher who will appear on the ballot without a party affiliation.
Spakovsky said the legal analysis could change if operatives paid the candidate or provided services to help organize his campaign.
“indictment is basically along exactly those same lines, claiming that that Donald Trump was trying to defraud U.S. voters from fair and honest elections. So Jack Smith and Democrats, they set the precedent for the kind of investigation Justice Department is doing now.”
Daniel J. Sullivan reportedly left Alaska hometown before Senate election
Multiple sources confirmed to CBS News that Daniel J. Sullivan left his hometown of Petersburg earlier this week.
The local school district in Petersburg said Sullivan taught music and fourth and fifth grade for nearly 20 years before retiring in 2021.
Andrew Worhatch, a Petersburg fisherman, said he does not think Sullivan's candidacy is serious and that he has not seen a platform.
“If you intend to vote and intentionally vote, you know who you're going to vote for, and it says 'Daniel J. Sullivan, Jr.,' then it says 'Dan Sullivan, incumbent.' Just read the paper. It's not that hard.”
Trump administration renews bid to block Alaska election results
A New York Times report alleged that members of Peltola’s campaign helped recruit a retired teacher, Dan J Sullivan Jr, to run for the Senate seat as a spoiler candidate.
The Department of Justice issued 40 subpoenas and document preservation requests as part of the revised complaint.
In June, Alaska’s Supreme Court ruled that Dan J Sullivan Jr could compete in the midterms.
Alaska prosecutor investigates alleged Democratic plot with second Dan Sullivan
Alaska governor Mike Dunleavy announced plans to launch a criminal investigation based on the New York Times report.
The Department of Justice asked a federal judge to order Alaska elections officials to isolate ballots ranking Daniel J Sullivan to investigate potential voter confusion.
US attorney Michael Heyman confirmed the existence of a criminal and civil investigation into an alleged scheme by Democrats to recruit a spoiler candidate named Dan Sullivan for the US Senate race in Alaska.
Working-class Alaskan Native challenges Republican millionaire for Congress seat
Bill Hill is a Dena'ina Athabascan Native Alaskan.
As of 2025, 18.1% of all workers in Alaska were union members, the third highest rate in the US.
Bill Hill has not specified whether he would caucus with Democrats if elected.
Alaska Senate race controversy over Peltola and Decoy Dan Sullivan
Mary Peltola stated in a speech to supporters in Juneau that she knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot besides herself and the incumbent.
The New York Times reported that Peltola's campaign and senior aides at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee worked to place the second Dan Sullivan on the ballot to draw votes away from the incumbent Republican senator.
Senator Dan Sullivan accused Peltola's campaign of demonstrating the most corrupt action possible and said she is still lying about it.
“And that is exactly why you saw the DOJ intervene just last week to make sure there were protections in place before the election could be certified to make sure everything was above board. And now we have this bombshell report coming out exposing exactly what we have been saying, and I think this points to the larger issue of Democrats continually fighting election integrity, because again, they have admitted that they cannot win fair and square when safeguards are in place.”
Justice Department requests separating Alaska ranked ballots in Dan Sullivan Senate race
Peltola denied any involvement in Dan J. Sullivan's campaign.
Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward wrote the court filing requesting preservation and segregation of ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan to investigate whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion.
The New York Times reported that Democrat Mary Peltola's campaign was involved in recruiting Dan J. Sullivan to run against Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan.
Alaska Senate ballot scandal: investigation into alleged plot to recruit second Dan Sullivan
Alaska's election uses ranked choice voting with four candidates on the ballot.
The U.S. Attorney in Alaska stated that both a civil and criminal investigation into the Senate race are ongoing.
No charges had been filed as of Friday morning.
Peltola campaign alleged to have recruited second Dan Sullivan in Alaska Senate race
Federal prosecutors are conducting an aggressive criminal investigation into how the second Sullivan secured a spot on Alaska's ballot, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
Sen. Dan Sullivan called the alleged scheme a scandal at the highest order.
The Times reported that the Peltola campaign's effort was much broader and the group worked to coax other would-be spoilers into the race.
“The staffer complied, combing through voter records to produce a list of Dan Sullivans from across the state. ... [I]f the Peltola campaign or its allies could track down and persuade another Dan Sullivan to run for Senate, the confusion could cost the senator crucial votes on the state’s unusual, four-person ballot. The plan worked,”
Alaska governor orders investigation into alleged Senate ballot scheme
Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy ordered an investigation into an alleged effort to recruit candidates for the state's Senate race.
Peltola's campaign committee said it had no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.
Dunleavy said the Alaska Division of Elections investigated similar concerns in June.
“Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support,”
DoJ issues subpoenas over same-name Alaska candidates
ABC News and the Associated Press reported the issuance of the subpoenas.
Donald Trump said he ordered the justice department to file a lawsuit to block the certification of the Senate election if Dan Sullivan does not win.
The US justice department reportedly issued subpoenas in response to a report that Mary Peltola's campaign collaborated to get a challenger with the same name as Senator Dan Sullivan on the midterm ballot.
Alaska governor orders investigation into Peltola Senate campaign over alleged second Dan Sullivan recruitment and ballot-stacking
President Donald Trump said he ordered the DOJ to file the lawsuit.
The DSCC said Republicans have a history of recruiting candidates to boost their own campaigns, including spending nearly half a million dollars to secure a ballot spot for an Arizona resident in the Alaska Senate race.
A federal judge allowed Peltola's campaign and the DSCC to intervene in the DOJ lawsuit.
“The staffer complied, combing through voter records to produce a list of Dan Sullivans from across the state. ... [I]f the Peltola campaign or its allies could track down and persuade another Dan Sullivan to run for Senate, the confusion could cost the senator crucial votes on the state’s unusual, four-person ballot. The plan worked,”
Mary Peltola campaign and DSCC recruited spoiler candidate in Alaska Senate race
Alaska uses ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to rank candidates by preference.
Trump acknowledged ordering the DOJ's lawsuit.
The Alaska Supreme Court allowed Daniel J. Sullivan on the ballot.
DOJ pre-emptive lawsuit to block Alaska Senate results certification
Democrats have maintained they have no connection to Daniel J. Sullivan, and Sullivan himself has denied running to confuse voters.
Blanche rejected the suggestion that the lawsuit aimed to sway the election in Alaska toward Republicans, calling it 'crazy.'
Alaska applies a top-four primary system to select candidates for the general election, and the November general election uses ranked-choice voting.
Alaska Senate candidate Mary Peltola delays campaign stops after car crash
The occupant of a third vehicle refused medical transport.
Police responded to a multi-vehicle collision at about 6:55pm on Saturday.
Peltola required medical attention after the collision.
DOJ research on Alaska Senate challenge
The Alaska Supreme Court affirmed that Daniel J. Sullivan could appear on the ballot.
Daniel J. Sullivan, a former teacher who shares the same first and last name with the sitting senator, announced in June that he was entering the race.
Blanche said the DOJ's lawsuit is not saying 'don't certify.'
“I'm not sure why they thought they had to file a lawsuit, other than as Todd said earlier, make sure that you have the ballots right so we can be certain that the Democrats were not successful in confusing candidates to vote for someone else to better position Peltola for being the winner,”
Alaska Senate election lawsuit: Democrats move to dismiss, AG Blanche defends
A New York Times and Siena College poll in early October found Peltola leading the incumbent Sullivan by nearly 7 percentage points.
Attorney General Todd Blanche refused to discuss whether Trump personally asked him to file the lawsuit.
Blanche said the relief sought is not to determine who the senator is but to ensure ballots are kept in a way that may allow a court to investigate further.
“the Department of Justice’s assumption that every voter who casts a vote for Dan J. Sullivan really meant to vote for Senator Sullivan is insulting to voters and irreconcilable with Alaska’s ranked choice voting procedures and the ballot’s clear differentiation between the two candidates.”
Campaigns and attorneys weigh in on Trump DOJ suit over Alaska Senate race
Peltola told reporters at the Alaska Federation of Natives annual convention that the lawsuit was interference and very corrupt.
Sullivan's campaign said they had no prior knowledge of the lawsuit and no role in it.
Peltola finished eight points ahead of the incumbent Sullivan in the primary, garnering 49.5% of the vote compared to Sullivan's 41.4%.
Trump administration sues to block Alaska Senate results certification
The federal government argues that the sole purpose of Dan J. Sullivan's candidacy is to benefit the Peltola campaign by reducing votes for Senator Sullivan.
David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, called the lawsuit an unprecedented intervention by the federal government.
Dan J. Sullivan is a retired schoolteacher who lives in Petersburg, Alaska.
“To guard against this danger, it is vital that Defendants not certify any election result that may be impacted by voter confusion. An election result may be impacted by voter confusion if: (1) Senator Sullivan does not win the election; and (2) had all votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan been cast instead for Senator Sullivan and Alaska's rank-choice process played out accordingly, Senator Sullivan would have won the election,”
Trump administration sues to block certification of Alaska election
Dan S. Sullivan was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2014 and previously served as Alaska's attorney general and commissioner of natural resources.
Republicans hold 53 of the Senate's 100 seats.
Mary Peltola was the first Alaska Native elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2022.
“I'm the one that said, do it,”
Trump administration sues to block Alaska Senate certification
Alaska election officials initially removed Daniel J. Sullivan from the ballot after a complaint from the state Republican Party, but state courts ordered his inclusion.
Democratic groups including Mary Peltola's campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee are seeking to join the lawsuit as defendant-intervenors.
In June, the Alaska Supreme Court affirmed the decision to include Daniel J. Sullivan on the ballot and directed election officials to clearly distinguish the two men.
Trump's war and tariffs batter Alaska; pro-oil Democrat could flip Senate seat
Alaska's oil production has steadily declined since peaking in the late 1980s.
Peltola opposes Trump's tariff regime.
Peltola won a special election in 2022 to replace Don Young, who died at age 88.
Sullivan and Peltola spar in Senate debate
Sullivan cited a New York Times report alleging that 25 staffers quit on Mary Peltola because she abused them physically and emotionally.
A moderator confirmed that neither candidate received the debate questions beforehand.
Sullivan questioned whether Peltola had received the debate questions in advance.
Alaska Senate debate on Iran war, prices, and record in office
Sullivan said the Pentagon's announcement that it would livestream the execution of convicted terrorist Nidal Hasan has been withdrawn.
Dan Sullivan is the Republican incumbent in the Alaska Senate race.
Sullivan said a livestream of Nidal Hasan's execution would create more terrorists.
Republican with same name as incumbent Dan Sullivan advances from Alaska U.S. Senate primary
Democratic former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola advanced to the general election in the Senate race.
Alaska's state accepts absentee and overseas ballots up to 10 days after the primary as long as they were postmarked by election day.
Democrats Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and Tom Begich advanced in the race for governor.
Ex-mayor Dan Sullivan supports incumbent Dan Sullivan's Senate bid
Dan J Sullivan appeared on the primary ballot with no party affiliation.
The Republican party went to court to try to prevent Dan J Sullivan from running in the primary.
Mary Peltola is a former Alaska Democratic congresswoman running for US Senate.
Alaska Senate primary: Sullivan and Peltola advance, Mills loses
After 80% of votes were counted, Peltola led the primary at 48%, while Sullivan had 42.8%.
Another Dan Sullivan, a retired schoolteacher and US Forest Service employee, was in a distant third place in the Alaska Senate primary.
Alaska Republicans condemned the other Dan Sullivan as a sham candidate backed by Democrats running to confuse voters, but efforts to disqualify him were unsuccessful.
Live blog: US politics and Alaska primary results
Dennis Darby, president and CEO of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, said the additional time is welcome but the continued tariff threat leaves manufacturers and workers facing the same damaging uncertainty.
Ralph Norman called for Anthony Fauci to be imprisoned during the Tuesday night debate.
In March 2025 every province of Canada banned the import and distribution of American alcohol, and only Alberta and Saskatchewan have since lifted their bans.
“based on the fact that Canada and the U.S.A., subject to the finalization of documents, have a DEAL!”
Alaska US Senate race features two Dan Sullivans and Mary Peltola
Dan J. Sullivan is a registered Republican from Petersburg in Southeast Alaska.
Mary Peltola served as Alaska's lone U.S. House representative from September 2022 to January 2025.
Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan was in second place with 43% of the vote.
“Having my representative share my name and continually do a job that, in my opinion, is not what helps people of Alaska — it just sort of hit harder maybe than it hits other people,”