At least 1 Dan Sullivan will appear on Alaska’s ballot later this year, and a second could join him depending on an Alaska Supreme Court hearing Monday.
The dispute centers on whether multiple same-name candidates can appear and how much voter confusion that may create in a race already shadowed by party-switching questions.
A 2014 Alaska race showed the risk: 19% of expected primary voters in one poll thought future U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan was former Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan.
David Reamer’s historical review argues the tactic is old rather than novel, citing examples from Nebraska, Boston and New York where similar-name candidates were used to siphon votes.
The broader backdrop is Alaska’s long election history, including rules once banning alcohol sales on election day until polls closed—a statute repealed effective Jan. 1, 2024.