By Fatma Younis
Republican Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy has ordered a state investigation into an alleged organized effort to recruit candidates for the U.S. Senate race, including one sharing the same name as the incumbent Republican senator, following a New York Times report on the matter.
Investigation Directed at Department of Public Safety
In a statement, Dunleavy said the Times report revealed new evidence of an organized effort to manipulate Alaska's elections by recruiting candidates intended to confuse voters and misdirect their votes. The governor directed the state's Department of Public Safety to investigate whether the effort violated Alaska law and whether criminal charges or civil action were warranted.
Previous Election Concerns Cited
Dunleavy noted that the Alaska Division of Elections investigated similar concerns in June, and said the new reporting substantially supported the division's findings. "The evidence will determine what happens next," he said. "Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support. Deliberately tricking voters into casting their ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of our elections."
Report Details Alleged Spoiler Candidate Recruitment
The Times report, citing 12 sources, text messages and documents, alleged that members of Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola's campaign, lawyers for Peltola and senior aides at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee contributed to pushing Dan J. Sullivan, a Republican on Alaska's four-way ballot, to run. The effort to find a spoiler candidate who could potentially siphon votes from Sen. Dan Sullivan and benefit Peltola was internally referred to as the "ballot composition project."
Campaigns Deny Involvement
Alaskans for Mary, Peltola's campaign committee, said through a spokesperson it "has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign." The DSCC told ABC News it was "not involved with Dan J. Sullivan," adding that "Republicans have a long history of recruiting and propping up candidates in an attempt to boost their own campaigns."
