2026-06-07T10:30:08.018Z / 美国有线电视新闻网（CNN）
阿拉斯加州参议员丹·沙利文在提交参选文件的三天前，得知自己在这场高风险的连任竞选中迎来了一名共和党籍的最后时刻挑战者。
这名挑战者的名字：丹·J·沙利文。
沙利文参议员表示这绝非玩笑。
这位已连任两届的共和党现任议员以及共和党参议院竞选机构正就这位同名对手拉响严重警报，警告此举可能会通过混淆选民认知导致共和党丢失该席位，并让资金充裕的民主党挑战者、前众议员玛丽·佩尔托拉有机可乘。
在接受CNN采访时，沙利文参议员指责民主党领导人安排丹·J·沙利文参选，目的就是削弱自己的竞选活动——华盛顿和安克雷奇的民主党高层对此坚决否认。
“他参选的全部目的就是混淆阿拉斯加民众，让阿拉斯加选民误以为他就是我，这样他们就能操纵投票，让玛丽·佩尔托拉胜出，”沙利文参议员说道。
沙利文与全国共和党参议员委员会正敦促州政府官员将这位挑战者的名字从选票上移除，沙利文参议员告诉CNN，如果行政途径无法解决，他可能会诉诸法律。
他的新对手的参选声明于5月29日被阿拉斯加选举部门加盖公章——距离报名截止日期仅剩三天。而选票上能区分两人的唯一标识就是他们的中间名首字母（现任参议员的中间名首字母是“S”）。
“当人们说‘哦，有两个丹·沙利文，这不是很有趣吗？’”情绪激动的沙利文参议员说道，“不，这是作弊。”
丹·J·沙利文是阿拉斯加东南部一个小渔村的居民，他几乎没有公开谈论过自己的竞选活动，也没有回复CNN多次打来的电话、发送的邮件和短信以讨论其参选事宜。但在为数不多的公开表态中，丹·J·沙利文坚称自己的竞选活动是合法的。
在宣布参选的新闻稿中，丹·J·沙利文介绍了自己在美国林务局的工作经历以及担任小学教师的经历。周四，他在接受当地报纸《彼得斯堡飞行员报》采访时表示，参选前并未与佩尔托拉有过任何联系，并称“我甚至不知道该联系谁。”
但丹·J·沙利文似乎承认自己多年来曾向民主党捐款，其中包括向佩尔托拉的两次众议院竞选活动捐赠130美元，同时还聘请了一位客户包括民主党和进步派候选人的顾问来起草他最初的新闻稿。
丹·J·沙利文称自己过去曾投票支持两党候选人，并自称是“务实的共和党温和派”，他表示自己参选参议院的动机源于现任参议员不愿谴责唐纳德·特朗普总统18亿美元的“反武器化基金”，以及特朗普提出将自己的形象印在250美元面额钞票上的言论。
他驳斥了沙利文参议员关于其参选只会混淆选民的担忧。
“作为公民，你的责任是了解情况，所以当你走进投票站时，你清楚自己在做什么，”丹·J·沙利文告诉当地报纸，“人们可以阅读选民信息手册，或者时不时听听新闻，就能弄清楚两人的区别。”
丹·J·沙利文表示自己不会退出竞选。
“我完全有权利站出来参与竞选，”这位共和党挑战者沙利文说道，“这是我的名字，也是我祖父的名字：丹·沙利文。我父亲的名字也是：丹·沙利文。”
上一次民主党赢得阿拉斯加州参议院席位还是在2008年，马克·贝吉奇以微弱优势击败已故参议员特德·史蒂文斯。史蒂文斯是阿拉斯加政坛的支柱以及参议院的重量级人物，他在选举后刚被判定腐败罪名，最终该判决被推翻。
但尽管此后多年共和党在该州占据主导地位，民主党人今年认为这是自贝吉奇获胜以来夺回该席位的最佳机会——这在很大程度上是因为特朗普的执政表现令民众不满，以及选民生活成本上升，尤其是医疗保健成本上涨。据AdImpact的数据，民主党人已经在该竞选活动中花费了约640万美元的广告费用，而共和党人的支出为340万美元，未来还将有更多资金投入。
阿拉斯加州的特殊情况也让民主党人相信，该席位可能是他们夺回参议院控制权时可以拿下的四个翻转席位之一。他们不仅拥有资金充裕的挑战者佩尔托拉——她在2022年赢得了该州唯一的众议院席位，2024年竞选失利——而且该州的排名选择投票制度也可能为她提供助力。
由于阿拉斯加的选举采用开放初选模式，所有党派的候选人都可以参与，所有选民都可以投票，因此得票最多的四名候选人，无论党派，都将进入大选阶段。
而两名丹·沙利文将在8月初选中同时参选，共和党人尤其担心两人都能进入11月的大选并分散选票，从而让佩尔托拉获得明显优势。
“这是肮脏的政治手段，”沙利文参议员说道。他将矛头指向参议院民主党领袖查克·舒默以及民主党参议院竞选委员会主席克里斯汀·吉利布兰德。
“如果民主党参议院竞选委员会、舒默或吉利布兰德事先知晓此事，或者对此表示认可，甚至是幕后策划，那么在我看来这将是一起极其严重的丑闻，”他说道。
但华盛顿和阿拉斯加的民主党高层表示，他们与沙利文的参选毫无关联。
“我们的竞选团队与任何一位沙利文的竞选活动都没有牵连，”佩尔托拉竞选团队的一位发言人说道，“无论选票上还有谁，玛丽都会通过建立一个广泛的阿拉斯加民众联盟来赢得选举，这些民众已经准备好对抗被操纵的体系，将阿拉斯加的利益放在首位。”（佩尔托拉的竞选团队拒绝让她接受采访。）
“民主党参议院竞选委员会与丹·J·沙利文及其竞选活动没有任何关联，”该党派委员会的一位发言人说道。当被问及吉利布兰德或与其相关人员是否参与了丹·J·沙利文的参选决定及其竞选活动时，这位参议员的发言人表示“没有”。舒默的发言人在被问及这位参议院少数党领袖或其助手是否以任何方式参与了丹·J·沙利文的竞选活动时，也给出了“没有”的答复。
阿拉斯加民主党执行主任珍妮-玛丽·斯特赖克也表示，该组织“与任何一位丹·沙利文都没有任何关联”。
参议院多数党政治行动委员会——民主党顶级超级政治行动委员会——的发言人劳伦·弗伦奇表示，该组织“从未”与丹·J·沙利文有过任何“直接或间接”的沟通，也没有参与他的竞选活动。
“但我们可以给沙利文参议员一些免费建议：如果你因为一位来自彼得斯堡的退休教师而如此心烦意乱，大发脾气，那你或许应该少些抱怨，多向阿拉斯加民众解释你为什么投票支持削减医疗补助计划。”
共和党人正在向当地官员施加更大压力，要求他们对丹·J·沙利文采取行动，并指出其他间接证据来指控这位挑战者。
在CNN获得的一封信中，全国共和党参议员委员会要求阿拉斯加州副州长兼选举主管将丹·J·沙利文从选票上移除，称此举威胁到选举公正性。在接受CNN采访时，沙利文参议员表示，如果副州长不将这位挑战者的名字从选票上移除，“那么这很可能会引发诉讼”。
阿拉斯加选举部门拒绝置评，副州长办公室也未回复置评请求。
全国共和党参议员委员会和沙利文指出了丹·J·沙利文竞选声明的元数据，该文件与安伯·李有关联，而安伯·李此前曾公开支持佩尔托拉。
在接受《彼得斯堡飞行员报》采访时，丹·J·沙利文这位前五年级教师似乎证实自己确实聘请了李，称他是在网上搜索顾问时找到她的。
“我用谷歌搜索政治顾问，”他说道，“在她的简介中提到她曾撰写中学文学作品。我想：嗯，和她聊聊应该会很有意思。”
李没有回复多次置评请求。
共和党人还指出了丹·J·沙利文过去的竞选捐款记录，因为这位初级挑战者似乎曾向民主党事业和候选人捐款。
根据美国联邦选举委员会的文件，近年来，彼得斯堡的一位名叫丹尼尔或丹·沙利文的人向民主党主要筹款平台ActBlue捐赠了650美元，其中包括2022年和2024年给佩尔托拉众议院竞选活动的捐款。美国联邦选举委员会的文件显示，没有证据表明彼得斯堡的丹尼尔或丹·沙利文曾向共和党竞选活动捐款。
丹·J·沙利文告诉当地报纸，他支持两党的候选人，甚至将自己与阿拉斯加州另一位共和党参议员丽莎·穆尔科斯基相提并论——穆尔科斯基是参议院的摇摆票，经常与特朗普意见不合，不受共和党基础选民的欢迎。
“我在两方面都属于温和派……我会寻找那些我认为能够解决问题、做成事情的人，我认为他们会与他人合作，看起来很有同情心，这就是我捐款的原因，”丹·J·沙利文说道。
但沙利文参议员并不买账，称他的新对手是“虚假候选人”。
“这就是腐败，”这位参议员说道，“他们试图作弊。我的意思是，这根本站不住脚。”
GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan is raising alarms about an 11th hour challenger: Dan J. Sullivan
2026-06-07T10:30:08.018Z / CNN
It was three days before the filing deadline when Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan learned of an eleventh-hour Republican challenger in his high-stakes reelection race.
The challenger’s name: Dan J. Sullivan.
Sen. Sullivan says it’s not a joke.
The two-term Republican incumbent, and the GOP’s Senate campaign arm, are raising major alarms about his same-name rival, warning that it could cost them a seat by confusing the electorate and give a leg-up to his well-funded Democratic challenger, former Rep. Mary Peltola.
In an interview with CNN, the senator accused Democratic leaders of planting Dan J. Sullivan in the race with the precise hope of undercutting his campaign – an allegation top Democrats in Washington and Anchorage firmly deny.
“His whole purpose of running is to confuse Alaskans, to make him, make them think – Alaskan voters – that somehow he’s me, so they could rig the vote in favor of Mary Peltola,” Sen. Sullivan said.
Sullivan and the National Republican Senatorial Committee are pressing state officials to remove his challenger’s name from the ballot, with the senator telling CNN that he could take the matter to court if they don’t succeed administratively.
His new rival’s declaration of candidacy was stamped by the Alaska Divisions of Elections on May 29 – three days before the filing deadline. And the only thing that may distinguish the two men on the ballot is their middle initial. (The senator’s middle initial is “S.”)
“When people are going, ‘Oh, there’s two Dan Sullivans, isn’t that funny?’” an animated Sen. Sullivan said. “No, it’s cheating.”
Dan J. Sullivan, a resident of a small fishing town in southeast Alaska, has said little publicly about his campaign – and he did not return several calls, emails and texts from CNN to discuss his bid. But in his few public comments, Dan J. Sullivan insists his campaign is legitimate.
In a press release announcing his campaign, Dan J. Sullivan described careers in the US Forest Service and as an elementary school teacher. And he told his local newspaper, the Petersburg Pilot, on Thursday that he had no contact with Peltola prior to running, saying “I wouldn’t even know who to speak to.”
But Dan J. Sullivan appeared to acknowledge donating to Democrats over the years, including $130 to Peltola’s two House campaigns, while also enlisting a consultant whose clients include Democratic and progressive candidates to draft up his initial press release.
Dan J. Sullivan argued that he’s voted and supported both Democrats and Republicans in the past. And he called himself a “pragmatic Republican centrist,” contending his nascent Senate bid was motivated over the senator’s reluctance to call out President Donald Trump’s $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” and talk of placing his image on a$250 bill.
He dismissed concerns from the senator that the candidacy would merely confuse the electorate.
“Your responsibility as a citizen is to understand, so when you go into the voting booth, you know what you’re doing,” Dan J. Sullivan told the local newspaper. “People can read a voter information pamphlet and maybe listen to the news here and there and figure out which one is which.”
Dan J. Sullivan said he would not drop out.
“I have every right to stand up and do this,” said Sullivan, the GOP challenger. “It’s my name, my grandfather’s name: Dan Sullivan. My dad’s name: Dan Sullivan.”
The last time a Democrat won a senate race in Alaska was in 2008, when Mark Begich won by a razor-thin margin against the late-Sen. Ted Stevens, a pillar in the state and a titan in the Senate who had just been convicted on corruption charges that, after the election, ultimately were overturned.
But even as Republicans have dominated the state in the years since, Democrats this year see their best path since Begich’s triumph to flip the seat – in large part because of the souring environment over Trump’s job performance and rising costs for voters, particularly over healthcare. Democrats have already spent about $6.4 million on ad airtime in the race, compared to Republicans’ $3.4 million, according to AdImpact – with millions more on the way.
The unique circumstances in Alaska also give Democrats hope that the seat could be one of four they can flip to retake the Senate. Not only do they have a well-funded challenger in Peltola, who won the state’s lone House seat in 2022 before losing in 2024, but the state’s ranked-choice voting system also could give her a boost.
Since elections in Alaska start with an open primary, in which candidates of all parties compete and all voters are allowed to participate, the top four vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the general election.
And with two Dan Sullivans competing in the August primary, Republicans are especially nervous that both could get into the November general election and split the vote, giving Peltola a clear advantage.
“This is dirty politics,” Sen. Sullivan said. He pointed to Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
“If somehow the DSCC or Schumer or Gillibrand knew about this or were okay with this or maybe even orchestrated it, my view is this would be a scandal of the highest order,” he said.
But top Democrats across Washington and in Alaska say they had nothing to do with Sullivan’s bid.
“Our campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign,” a Peltola campaign spokesperson said. “It doesn’t matter who else is on the ballot, Mary is going to win by building a broad coalition of Alaskans ready to take on the rigged system and put Alaska first.” (Peltola’s campaign declined to make her available for an interview.)
“The DSCC has no involvement with Dan J. Sullivan or his campaign,” a spokesperson for the party committee said. When asked if Gillibrand or anybody associated with her have any involvement in Dan J. Sullivan’s decision to run and his campaign, a spokesperson for the senator said “No.” A Schumer spokesperson also said “no,” when asked if the Senate minority leader or any of his associates were involved in Dan J. Sullivan’s campaign in any way.
Alaska Democratic Party executive director Jenny-Marie Stryker also said her group “is in no way affiliated with either Dan Sullivan.”
Lauren French, spokesperson for Senate Majority PAC, a top Democratic super PAC, said the group has “never” communicated with Dan J. Sullivan, “directly or indirectly” and had no involvement in his campaign.
“But we will offer some free advice to Senator Sullivan: If you’re so rattled by a real challenger that you’re throwing a temper tantrum over a retired teacher from Petersburg, you might want to spend less time whining and more time explaining to Alaskans why you voted to cut Medicaid.”
Republicans are amping up the pressure on local officials to take action against Dan J. Sullivan – and point to other circumstantial evidence to make their case against the challenger.
In a letter obtained by CNN, the National Republican Senatorial Committee asked Alaska’s lieutenant governor and elections chief to remove Dan J. Sullivan from the ballot, arguing that it threatens election integrity. And in the interview with CNN, Sen. Sullivan said if the lieutenant governor doesn’t remove his challenger’s name from the ballot, “then this will probably lead to litigation.”
The Alaska Division of Elections declined to comment, and the lieutenant governor’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
The NRSC and Sullivan spotlighted metadata of Dan J. Sullivan’s campaign announcement, which ties the document to Amber Lee, a consultant who has publicly supported Peltola in the past.
In his interview with the Petersburg Pilot, Dan J. Sullivan, a former fifth grade teacher, appeared to confirm he enlisted Lee, contending he found her when looking up consultants online.
“I Googled looking for political consultants,” he said. “In her bio it said that she writes middle school literature. I thought: well, she’d be interesting to talk to.”
Lee did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
Dan J. Sullivan’s past campaign contributions have also been flagged by the GOP, since the primary challenger appears to have given to Democratic causes and candidates in the past.
According to FEC filings, either a Daniel or Dan Sullivan in Petersburg has donated $650 to ActBlue, the Democratic Party’s main fundraising platform, in recent years, including contributions earmarked for Peltola’s House campaigns in 2022 and 2024. There is no evidence of contributions to Republican campaigns from a Daniel or Dan Sullivan in Petersberg, FEC filings show.
Dan J. Sullivan told his local paper that he backs candidates in both parties, and even compared himself to Alaska’s other GOP senator, Lisa Murkowski, a swing vote in the Senate who is often at odds with Trump and out of favor with the base.
“I’m a moderate on both ends of things … I look for people that I think are going to solve some problems, get things done, I think they’re going to work with people and seem like they’re caring, and that’s why I’ve given money,” Dan J. Sullivan said.
But the senator isn’t buying it, calling his new rival a “sham candidate.”
“This is just corruption,” the senator said. “They’re trying to cheat. I mean, there’s no plausible explanation.”