Alaska Senate race gets weird as Dan Sullivan will try to beat Dan Sullivan for the seat

Dan J. Sullivan, a retired schoolteacher in Alaska who launched a campaign to take on the incumbent Senator with the same name, came away from last week’s primary with roughly 2.5 percent of the vote, according to the Associated Press.

That means come November, Dan J. Sullivan and Senator Dan S. Sullivan will both appear on the ballot as Republican contenders – causing a potential headache for the GOP and for voters.

Overnight Tuesday, the Associated Press determined Dan J. Sullivan had secured 2.5 percent of the vote from the August 18 primary, making him the third candidate to qualify for the four slots in November.

Already, Senator Dan S. Sullivan and former congresswoman Mary Peltola, who is running as a Democrat, had secured the top two percentages in the race. A fourth slot has yet to be determined.

It’s a win for Dan J. Sullivan, who has spent months trying to prove himself as a legitimate candidate. Established Republicans have been accusing Dan J. Sullivan of working with Democrats to confuse voters and take ballots away from the incumbent.

The Independent has asked Dan J. Sullivan and Dan S. Sullivan for comment.

A spokesperson for the National Republican Senatorial Committee had previously accused Peltola of planting Dan J. Sullivan in the race. Peltola’s campaign has denied being involved in, encouraging or soliciting Dan J. Sullivan to run for office.

Senator Dan S. Sullivan claimed, in June, that Democrats had “recruited a guy by the name of Dan Sullivan” to enter the race “to confuse Alaskans” and “rig the vote.”

“He’s a liberal, progressive,” Senator Dan S. Sullivan said.

The senator’s comments referred to Dan J. Sullivan’s previous donations to Peltola’s campaign and reporting from locals who said they had known Dan J. Sullivan as a liberal.

Senator Dan S. Sullivan has been serving the people of Alaska as the Republican incumbent since 2015 – he is currently facing off against Democrat Mary Peltola to retain his seat (Reuters)

The Alaska Division of Elections, led by a Republican, tried to kick Dan J. Sullivan off the ballot over the summer, but the ruling was reversed by a federal judge.

Last week, President Donald Trump intervened to urge Alaskans to vote for “THE REAL DAN SULLIVAN,” Senator Dan S. Sullivan, and referred to the people behind Dan J. Sullivan’s campaign as “Fraudsters.”

Dan J. Sullivan has maintained that his bid for the Senate seat is in good faith and he wants to bring change to Alaska.

“I am not a ‘fake’ Dan Sullivan. I am Dan Sullivan,” he told the New York Times.

Dan J. Sullivan is a retired schoolteacher and a former US Forest Service employee who says he wants to bring change to Alaska by removing incumbents that he has accused of looking out for themselves more than Alaskans (Sullivan for Senate)

“My intention is not to trick people,” Dan J. Sullivan told the newspaper. “I would hope people are informed enough to know the difference between an incumbent senator and a teacher.”

The Alaska Senate race is expected to be competitive.

According to the AP’s primary results, Peltola has acquired 48.2 percent of the vote while Senator Dan S. Sullivan has 42.6 percent.