Dunleavy Orders Probe Into Alleged Alaskan Senate Spoiler Scheme

Twelve sources and a collection of text messages and documents form the basis of a new federal investigation ordered by Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy. The probe targets an alleged organized effort to manipulate the state's Senate race. The goal, according to the governor, was to recruit candidates intended to misdirect votes and confuse the electorate.

Dunleavy directed the Department of Public Safety to determine if state law was violated. The department will assess whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted. The governor stated that the Division of Elections had already investigated similar concerns in June. He noted that recent reporting substantially supported the findings from that earlier division review.

The alleged scheme involved recruiting Dan J. Sullivan for the ballot. Sullivan is a Republican running in a four-way race against incumbent Senate Republican Dan Sullivan. The two candidates share the same name. A New York Times report described the initiative as a ballot composition project. The effort aimed to place a spoiler candidate on the ballot to siphon votes from the incumbent and benefit Democrat Mary Peltola.

Dunleavy said the report revealed new evidence of this manipulation. He emphasized that Alaskans have a fundamental right to support the candidate they intend to choose. According to the governor, deliberately tricking voters into casting ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of elections. He added that any person or organization found to have broken the law must be held accountable.

The Times report identified members of Peltola's campaign, her lawyers, and senior aides at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee as contributors to the push. Alaskans for Mary, Peltola's campaign committee, issued a response on Wednesday. A spokesperson stated that the committee has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.

The DSCC told ABC News in a statement that it was not involved with Dan J. Sullivan. A DSCC spokesperson wrote that Republicans have a long history of recruiting and propping up candidates to boost their own campaigns. Dunleavy concluded that the evidence will determine what happens next in the case.