Alaska Senate Candidate Dan Sullivan Jr. Barred from Primary

A candidate who shares the name and party affiliation of incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan has been ruled ineligible to appear on Alaska’s primary ballot. The decision, issued by Alaska Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher, concluded the candidacy was not filed in good faith but was intended to confuse voters.

The candidate, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher from Petersburg, filed his declaration of candidacy just days before the June 1 deadline, listing his name as "Dan Sullivan" and affiliating with the Republican Party. This created an overlap with the incumbent senator, who is listed on the ballot as Dan S. Sullivan. In a letter dated Monday, June 15, Beecher stated the filing was made "with a purpose to confuse or mislead and to thereby compromise the ballot’s fairness or neutrality."

Beecher cited several factors in her ruling. She noted the candidate had never previously registered to vote or sought ballot access under the name "Dan Sullivan," but instead used his full legal name, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. She also pointed out that he had only registered as a Republican two days before filing his candidacy, having been previously affiliated with the...