The New York Times reported on Wednesday that individuals involved in the campaign of Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola, along with senior aides to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), participated in efforts to recruit a man named Daniel J. Sullivan to run for the U.S. Senate in Alaska, with the aim of splitting votes from incumbent Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan.
The New York Times, citing interviews, text messages, and documents prepared for a potential lawsuit against Peltola’s campaign team, reported that “not only did Ms. Peltola’s team collaborate with those attempting to recruit Mr. Sullivan, but the scope of this effort was broader.”
The report stated: “The group also attempted to recruit other potential spoiler candidates to dilute the incumbent’s support and help the Democrat win.”
Elisa Rios, Pelota’s former campaign manager, told The New York Times that Pelota herself was not directly involved in the project, but “was clearly aware,” the report said.
The New York Times noted that last week Rios attempted to retract his statement confirming efforts to recruit "disruptors."
The New York Times reported that Perotola's campaign and the DSCC "denied involvement in efforts to recruit spoilers onto the ballot in Alaska."
A few days before this report was published, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit alleging that the campaign of non-incumbent candidate Sullivan sought to act as a "spoiler" for incumbent Sullivan due to voter confusion.
The Department of Justice has requested a federal judge in Alaska to block certification of any Senate election results that could be affected by voter confusion, "until the investigation determines whether votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan were intended for Senator Sullivan."
The winner of this election could determine whether the Democrats regain control of the Senate or whether the Republicans maintain their current majority.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he ordered the Department of Justice to file this lawsuit.
Last Friday, Trump said: "I said, 'Go ahead.' They have two people named Dan Sullivan... so the Democrats put forward one of them."
In a statement to CNBC regarding the New York Times article, the Peltola campaign said: “Alaskans support Mary’s campaign, which has no connection to any Sullivan campaign. Like Mary, our campaign focuses on lowering costs and fixing Washington’s rigged system.”
A DSCC spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC: "DSCC has no affiliation with Dan J. Sullivan."
The spokesperson also said, "The Republican Party has a long history of recruiting and supporting candidates to aid its own campaigns—including recruiting a prisoner with a New York address to run against Mary Peltola, and spending nearly $500,000 in this Senate race to help a resident of Arizona gain ballot access in Alaska."
The spokesperson also cited several examples from this and previous election cycles in which the Republican Party promoted third-party and "dark horse" candidates to increase the likelihood of Republican candidates winning.
The Pelota campaign, the DSCC, and Alaska election officials have all requested Judge Sharon Gleason, who is overseeing the Department of Justice’s lawsuit, to dismiss the case before the November 3 election. The League of Women Voters of Alaska and the advocacy organization Common Cause have also applied to intervene in the case to oppose the Department of Justice’s actions.
Alaska officials stated that the Department of Justice "has no authority whatsoever to interfere in state elections, let alone support a preferred candidate," and called the lawsuit and its "requested remedies" a shadow over Alaska's elections.
State officials stated in court filings that Alaska’s election division "has taken significant steps to distinguish" the two Sullivan candidates on the ballot "so voters can easily identify which candidate is which."
Judge Gleason accelerated the proceedings on Monday evening, increasing the likelihood that she will decide whether to dismiss the case before Election Day at the U.S. District Court in Anchorage.
Daniel J. Sullivan won a legal dispute, and ultimately the Alaska Supreme Court allowed him to appear on the nonpartisan primary ballot, despite objections from state election officials who argued his presence would confuse voters.
He received enough votes in that election to qualify as one of the four candidates on the November general election ballot.
On the election ballot, his name appeared as "Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr." with no additional information beside it.
Directly below his name, Senator Sullivan is listed as "Sullivan, Dan S." with the parenthetical note "(Registered Republican, Incumbent)."
Peltola is a former U.S. Congresswoman and the only Democrat on the ballot.
Alaska uses ranked-choice voting, allowing voters to rank candidates by preference. This system could enable voters to list both Sullivans as choices; if the non-incumbent candidate is eliminated in the first round of counting, their votes may be transferred to the incumbent senator.
The New York Times, citing Rios, Perlotra’s former campaign manager, reported that she was dismissed in August and said, “Alaskan voters need to know” about this effort to recruit others to run.
Rios was quoted as saying: "There is much speculation outside; voters should see the full picture when making their decisions."
The New York Times reported that Rios told the paper last week that she wanted to retract her previous statement.
According to The New York Times, Rios wrote: “As we discussed during our call earlier today, I confirm that I have retracted all statements I made regarding any articles you may or may not write in connection with my 2026 Alaska Senate campaign. I do not wish to serve as a source for any reporting in any capacity.”
The report stated that it informed Rios she would appear in the article and noted that her interview content was “consistent with other reporting by The New York Times.”