Alaska’s Senate race has turned into an extraordinary fight for political power, with Trump-backed incumbent Dan Sullivan facing Democrat Mary Peltola—and a candidate who shares his name.
Republicans have accused the lookalike candidate of being a liberal plant, branding him “Decoy Dan.” A bombshell investigation by The New York Times has now reported that the allegations are supported by evidence.
According to the Times, a staffer working for Peltola was instructed to identify as many people named Dan Sullivan as possible.
The effort appeared to produce results. This spring, a retired teacher from a small fishing village announced that he would run for the Senate under the name Dan Sullivan.
The two candidates are distinguished only by their middle initials. The incumbent, whom President Trump refers to as the “real” Dan Sullivan, is Dan S Sullivan. The other candidate’s full name is Dan J Sullivan.
The Peltola campaign has so far denied having any role in his candidacy.
However, the Times investigation cited interviews, text messages and documents that allegedly show Peltola’s team sought to recruit not just one, but several people named Dan Sullivan. The reported goal was to improve her chances of defeating the Republican incumbent.
The initiative was reportedly known as the Ballot Composition Project. It allegedly involved a “mysterious Midwestern operative” who traveled across Alaska, the Last Frontier, recruiting potential candidates while socializing with them in local pubs.
Trump ordered a lawsuit against Alaska last week if the “real” Dan Sullivan does not win the Senate race
A new investigation from The New York Times uncovered an alleged Democratic scheme to recruit Alaskans named Dan Sullivan
Democratic hopeful Mary Peltola is challenging incumbent Dan Sullivan
Lawyers connected to the Peltola campaign and senior officials from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) were reportedly involved in the operation.
The investigation also found that Democrats considered forming a new political party in an effort to draw votes away from Republicans.
The revelations came after President Trump personally directed the Justice Department to sue Alaska in an extraordinary attempt to prevent certification of the Senate election results if the incumbent loses.
“I’m the one that said do it,” Trump told reporters Friday as he arrived in Florida for a campaign rally, confirming his role in the lawsuit filed by his administration the previous Thursday.
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Trump has repeatedly accused Democrats of placing a rival candidate named Daniel J Sullivan Jr. on the ballot to divert votes from the sitting senator.
Vice President JD Vance reiterated those accusations Tuesday. “When you put a person on the ballot explicitly to try to confuse voters, I think that’s the definition of electoral fraud. And I don’t think that we should endorse it,” he told reporters.
A spokesperson for the Sullivan campaign told the Daily Mail: “Not one player in this operation has acted in good faith with Alaska voters. Mary Peltola and her campaign have spent months gaslighting Alaskans, denying a scheme they were running all along.
“We always knew this was a concerted effort to deceive Alaskans, and Mary Peltola was hoping it would stay covered up until after the election.”
The Daily Mail contacted Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC for comment.
Trump traveled to Alaska earlier this month to boost Sullivan’s re-election bid.
He once again promised $5,000 to every adult American – but provided one caveat.
During his speech, Trump said he is ‘going to give all adult citizens in the United States $5,000’ if the Republicans hold both chambers of Congress in November.
‘You gotta spend it in the United States of America,’ the president added. ‘I don’t want you going to China.’
The president made the same promise at previous events like the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas in early September, calling it the ‘Trump Dividend.’
The unprecedented plan surprised some of Trump’s most devout supporters.
A sample election ballot is displayed in Anchorage, Alaska, showing both of the Daniel Sullivan candidates
Palantir co-founder and GOP donor Joe Lonsdale reacted to the Dallas announcement by saying: ‘For the record, I am hugely in favor of winning the midterms, and love much about this admin, but am strongly against bread and circus bribes.’
Previous such promises made by the president during his second term have never materialized, although Trump kept word on his ‘warrior dividend,’ paying out $1,776 to 1.4 million military officials in December 2025.