Attack of the clones: Alaska has a ‘black PR’ moment

Two candidates named Dan Sullivan are running in Alaska’s Senate race, prompting accusations of electoral manipulation US President Donald Trump has accused Democrats of fraud over an alleged plot to field a namesake candidate in Alaska’s Senate race. An electoral trick familiar to Russians who remember the political free-for-all of the 1990s, the tactic involves recruiting a candidate whose name matches that of an established politician in the hope of confusing voters and siphoning off votes. In Russia, such contenders became known as “clone candidates” and were a hallmark of the country’s notoriously ruthless election campaigns, forming part of the political “black PR” playbook. In Alaska, Republican incumbent Senator Dan S. Sullivan now faces a namesake challenger, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. , a retired teacher who is also running in the November 3 election.

According to a New York Times investigation, operatives linked to Democratic candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee allegedly helped recruit the namesake candidate as part of a broader effort to undermine the incumbent. The newspaper cited interviews, text messages and documents detailing the operation, which reportedly began in 2025. Both Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic committee have denied involvement. Following the report, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, ordered an investigation into whether any laws had been broken and whether criminal charges or civil action was warranted. Trump has branded the alleged scheme “voter fraud at the highest level” and called for Peltola and the namesake candidate to be removed from the ballot and prosecuted. @Odinsraven66 @StephenM To be precise, there is no indication what party "Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr. ” might be…