A man of the name Dan Sullivan from Petersburg has filed to run against incumbent U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan for Alaska’s U.S. Senate seat up for election this November. Petersburg Dan, who filed as a Republican, stands accused of running with the intention to confuse voters and cheat incumbent Dan Sullivan of votes.
Alaska’s Lieutenant Governor, Nancy Dahlstrom, opened an investigation into Peterburg Dan’s campaign validity. She sent a letter to Petersburg Dan, stating, “I’m troubled by the allegation that you filed for office in coordination with another campaign with the intention of confusing Alaskan voters in a way that will benefit one candidate over another. If true, it suggests that your declaration of candidacy, which was submitted under penalty of perjury, was not genuine and not properly filed. For these reasons, this letter serves as notice that I have requested an investigation of your recent declaration of candidacy for United States Senate before determining whether you can appear on the ballot and, if you can appear, in what manner your name will appear on the ballot.”
In her letter, Dahlstrom says there are “credible allegations” that Petersburg Dan filed “out of intention to confuse and manipulate voters by capitalizing on the fact that you share a first and last name with the incumbent senator.”
Dahlstrom writes that Petersburg Dan sent a letter on June 3 “responding to these allegations,” but that the letter “did not adequately respond to the specific allegations.” She then asks Petersburg Dan to respond to several specific questions regarding certain campaign decisions and potential connections to Democratic strategists. She asks whether he would object to his name appearing on the ballot as “Sullivan, Daniel James Jr. (non-incumbent)” to avoid voter confusion.
Petersburg Dan must provide his responses in an affidavit signed under penalty of perjury on or before noon on Wednesday, June 10, 2026.
Senator Sullivan, who believes Petersburg Dan is a “sham” candidate recruited by Democrats, stated he would file a lawsuit if Petersburg Dan remains on the ballot. “He is a liberal progressive,” said Senator Sullivan in an interview with CNN’s Manu Raju. “We’ve seen his donations to all the far-left groups. He’s donated to Peltola. And his whole purpose of running is to confuse Alaskans to make Alaskan voters think that somehow he’s me, so they could rig the vote in favor of Mary Peltola.”
Senator Sullivan is the target of a large-scale Democrat smear campaign to manipulate voters.
Readers can access Dahlstrom’s June 8th letter and Petersburg Dan’s June 3rd letter here:
