The Senate GOP’s campaign arm filed a complaint Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission, accusing a Democratic political consultant of helping launch a same-name Republican Senate candidate in Alaska in what Republicans say is a coordinated effort to confuse voters before the state’s August primary.
The complaint from the National Republican Senatorial Committee names two parties: Daniel J. Sullivan, a former U.S. Forest Service employee and elementary school teacher who filed last month to challenge incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan in the Aug. 18 Republican primary, and Amber Lee, a political strategist whose firm, Amber Lee Strategies LLC, primarily serves Democratic campaigns.
The NRSC alleges Lee provided professional services to the new Sullivan campaign at no charge, an arrangement the complaint describes as extending credit “outside the course of business for political campaign consultants.” Federal election law treats free professional services as an in-kind contribution, which must be disclosed and valued at fair market rates. Failing to do so constitutes a reporting violation.
According to the filing, Lee set up the new candidate’s campaign website and designed his logo, which the NRSC says closely mirrors that of the incumbent. Both logos draw from imagery of the Alaska state flag.
When he launched, the second Sullivan, who went by “Dan,” criticized the two-term senator for not putting “Alaska first” and for “focusing on himself above his constituents.” “It’s time for Alaska to elect a Sullivan that’s on their side,” he said in a campaign press release.
Incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan has served since 2015 and is seeking a third term. He faces a challenge in the general election from former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola, who is also challenging Sullivan.
Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, a Republican and the state’s chief election official, has launched a parallel inquiry into whether the new entrant coordinated with Peltola’s campaign before filing. Direct coordination between a nominally Republican candidate and a Democratic opponent could expose both parties to state election law violations.
Alaska uses a top-four primary system in which the four candidates receiving the most votes, regardless of party, advance to the November general election. A candidate sharing the incumbent’s full name appearing on the Republican primary ballot could draw away votes and complicate Sullivan’s path through a crowded field.
The NRSC is calling on the FEC to open a formal investigation into both Sullivan and Lee.
