WASHINGTON — Alaska Senate candidate Mary Peltola stopped short of categorically denying that people connected to her campaign helped recruit another Dan Sullivan into the race, while her campaign distanced itself from the effort after dismissing much of its original staff.
Instead, Peltola criticized the media for reporting on her team’s alleged role in recruiting Dan J. Sullivan, dubbed “Decoy Dan,” as a way to confuse voters who might otherwise support incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan.
“This is just another distraction. It’s another diversion. Every day it’s some new, you know, look over here moment. Not Dan Sullivan, registered Republican incumbent. Voted for this war. And I 14 times,” Peltola said angrily at an event in Soldotna, according to video posted by freelance reporter Matt Tunseth.
“Anybody who’s working in our best interest isn’t going to talk about the nonsense. This is all stuff to sell newspapers,” she said. “This is all stuff to get subscriptions. Nobody at the New York Times cares about affordability in Alaska.”
Peltola’s campaign is facing intense scrutiny following a New York Times report alleging that members of her team sought someone with the same name as her Republican opponent to enter the Senate contest.
“Alaskan voters need to know,” Elisa Rios, Peltola’s former campaign manager, told the outlet. Rios was removed during a staff overhaul in August.
“There was a lot of speculation, and voters should get the full picture when making their decisions,” Rios said. She maintained that Peltola was not directly involved in the recruitment effort but was “definitely aware” of it.
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The Times cited roughly a dozen sources and reviewed text messages that it said pointed to Peltola’s team being behind the recruitment of “Decoy Dan,” a retired public school teacher running as a Republican despite having voted for Democratic presidential candidates in recent elections.
“The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign,” Peltola’s campaign previously told The Post. “Like Mary, our campaign is focused on lowering costs and fixing the rigged system in DC.”
That statement, however, leaves open whether the campaign had any earlier role in recruiting “Decoy Dan.” Alaskans for Mary filed its statement of organization in January, after many of the key events described in the report allegedly occurred.
Republicans have seized on the controversy, circulating an older video in which Peltola said that “it should be a criminal offense to lie or mislead the electorate.”
Following the report, the Justice Department has intensified its examination of whether Democrats tried to confuse voters by supporting a candidate with a name matching the incumbent senator’s.
The department has already filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent certification of the election if Sen. Sullivan is defeated. The suit argues that his loss could be unfair because “Decoy Dan” was also on the ballot.
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has separately announced a criminal investigation into the allegations.
Peltola holds a 1.2-point advantage over Sen. Sullivan in the latest RealClearPolitics polling average. President Trump has attacked Peltola over the controversy and suggested she should be removed from the ballot, while the Justice Department continues to expand its criminal inquiry.
Peltola finished first in August’s open primary. The Nov. 3 general election includes four candidates, with the winner to be determined through ranked-choice voting.