House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) said Sunday there is “a big possibility” that Democrat Mary Peltola could be denied a Senate seat if she wins Alaska’s election, amid allegations that her campaign helped recruit a namesake candidate to confuse voters, Slay News reports.
Comer, whose committee has opened an investigation, made the comments on Fox News. The scrutiny centers on the candidacy of Dan J. Sullivan, a retired teacher running against incumbent Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R-AK). The alleged same-name recruitment effort has drawn condemnation from President Donald Trump and prompted a Justice Department lawsuit over potential voter confusion.
Comer acknowledged he had “not spoken to Sen. Thune about that,” referring to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), and did not announce any agreement with Senate leadership. He added that “at the end of the day, I think the American people can see loud and clear what was done here.”
Peltola, a former House Democrat, faces the incumbent Sullivan, the similarly named retired teacher and Republican Gerald Heikes. The New York Times reported that people connected to Peltola’s campaign and national Democrats took part in efforts to recruit candidates who could draw votes away from the Republican incumbent.
Peltola has denied involvement and called the allegations a distraction from the incumbent’s record. Speaking in Juneau last week, she said she “knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot except for me and the incumbent.” “I am not interested in tricking voters,” she added. Her campaign said it had “no involvement with either Sullivan campaign” and told the Times it “did not recruit any candidates into the race.” Dan J. Sullivan, who was registered as a Democrat until recently, has also denied running to mislead voters, calling the shared name a “matter of fate.”
Trump has called for Peltola to be prosecuted and to withdraw from the race. “That’s a fraud to the public,” he told reporters last week, describing the allegations as a “plot by the Democratic Party.”
On Sunday, U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit seeking to block certification if the incumbent Sullivan loses, calling the requested relief “infeasible” because many voters had already cast ballots. The department said it would appeal. “Alaskan voters deserve a fair election, not to be misled in an attempt to rig outcomes,” a department spokesperson said.
