US President Donald Trump has demanded that Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola and a rival sharing the name of Alaska's Republican incumbent be removed from next week's election ballot, accusing Democrats of an illegal scheme to confuse voters.
His call followed a New York Times investigation reporting that Democratic operatives had secretly recruited so-called "spoiler" candidates, including another Dan Sullivan, in an effort to draw votes away from Republican Senator Dan Sullivan.
"It has just been determined that the Democrats in Alaska illegally searched for, and recruited, a man named Dan Sullivan," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
He alleged that Democrats had committed perjury by making false statements under oath in federal court, and demanded that the incumbent be allowed to run without either Peltola or the "FAKE Dan Sullivan" on the ballot.
And he told reporters later that Peltola and any other alleged accomplices should be prosecuted. "To me, that's voter fraud at the highest level," he said.
But the Times noted that recruiting candidates to split an opponent's vote, a practice known as ballot stacking, is generally legal and has been used by both parties.
As recently as 2024, little-known former Republican Anthony Frascone beat Democrat Mondaire Jones in a low-turnout Working Families Party primary in New York state.
Peltola 'definitely aware'
Among those it said were recruited was Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher from a remote Alaskan fishing community. He has said he entered the race of his own volition.
The newspaper identified Democratic operative Jerid Kurtz as a central figure, reporting that he travelled around Alaska under an assumed name to court potential candidates.
Peltola's former campaign manager Elisa Rios told the paper the candidate was "definitely aware" of the project but not directly involved.
Peltola's campaign has denied recruiting any candidates.
The revelations come days after Trump ordered the Justice Department to sue Alaska over the second Sullivan's presence on the ballot.
The lawsuit seeks to delay certification if Peltola narrowly defeats the incumbent and votes cast for his namesake could have changed the outcome.
On Wednesday, US Vice President JD Vance defended the Trump administration’s legal challenge to Alaska’s Senate election, describing the candidacy of a second candidate with a name nearly identical to that of the incumbent as a “big fraud” and arguing that it could confuse voters ahead of next week’s midterm elections.
He argued that many voters would recognise the alleged problem but said others might be confused because of competing demands on their time.
