Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., is demanding key records from individuals involved in a reported Democrat-led scandal designed to deceive Alaska voters in the state’s 2026 Senate race.
The Badger State Republican sent a series of records preservation requests on Thursday to named figures in an alleged effort to confuse voters by recruiting Alaskans with the same name as incumbent GOP Sen. Dan S. Sullivan to run for the contested seat. The winner of the race could determine which party controls the Senate for the next two years.
“Every American should want to restore confidence and integrity to our election system,” Johnson said in a statement. “The New York Times report on the conspiracy to create confusion in Alaska’s U.S. Senate race details outrageous and possibly criminal behavior on the part of Democrat operatives. The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has sent a number of records preservation letters to help ensure evidence of wrongdoing is not destroyed.”
Published Wednesday, the Times report in question detailed how campaign aides for Democrat Mary Peltola, who is running to unseat Sen. Sullivan this cycle, and other Democrat-aligned figures purportedly found and recruited Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. (aka “Decoy Dan”) to challenge Sen. Sullivan in this year’s Senate race. While Peltola and her campaign have denied involvement in the alleged scam, the outlet found, “based on interviews and text messages, along with documents prepared for a potential lawsuit against the campaign, that not only did Ms. Peltola’s team work with people trying to recruit Mr. Sullivan to run for Senate, but the effort was much broader.”
“The group worked to coax other would-be spoilers into the race, to dilute the incumbent’s support and help catapult the Democrat to victory,” the report reads.
Individuals affiliated with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) and Russia collusion hoaxer Marc Elias’ Elias Law Group were also involved in the scandal, according to the Times.
The Alaska Division of Elections revealed in June that Decoy Dan had requested ballot access under the name “Dan Sullivan” despite having already been registered to vote as “Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.” The state agency pointed out other details indicating a ploy to deceive voters, such as Decoy Dan’s attempt to “be listed on the ballot as ‘Dan S. Sullivan’” despite his middle name beginning with a “J”; decision to register as a Republican two days before filing to run despite having never “been affiliated with the Republican Party in Alaska”; and creation of a campaign website that “uses a format, color scheme and overall theme similar to the public website for Senator Sullivan’s campaign.”
The Alaska Division of Elections’ move to declare Decoy Dan’s candidacy invalid for the 2026 primary was later overturned by the Alaska Supreme Court. The questionable candidate later advanced to the general election.
Thursday’s records preservation requests were sent to several figures reportedly involved with the effort to deceive Alaska voters. This includes Elisa Rios, Peltola’s former campaign manager; Anton McParland, Peltola’s former chief of staff; and Jerid Kurtz, a purported “specialist in secret ballot maneuvers.”
Johnson requested that Rios, McParland, and Kurtz forfeit any and all communications “to or from” one another since Jan. 1, 2025, that are related “to any effort to recruit individuals to run for the U.S. Senate election in Alaska.” This also includes communications “to or from” other individuals reportedly involved in the scandal — namely, Jacquelyn Lopez, an Elias Law Group attorney, and Shelbi Dantic, a DSCC employee.
The Wisconsin senator demanded that Rios, McParland, and Kurtz “preserve all records referring or relating to” the state’s 2026 Senate race. He asked that all requested information be provided to his subcommittee “no later than” Nov. 12.
“If true, the alleged efforts described in the October 28, 2026 article, would amount to a disturbing effort to undermine the integrity of the 2026 U.S. Senate election in Alaska,” Johnson wrote. “Pursuant to Senate Resolution 94 (119th Cong.), the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations … is conducting a review of alleged misconduct in the 2026 U.S. Senate election in Alaska.”
[Report: Russia Hoaxer Marc Elias’ Firm Was ‘Part Of’ Peltola Plot To Rig Alaska Ballot]
Decoy Dan’s appearance on Alaska’s 2026 ballot is made possible by the state’s top four ranked-choice voting (RCV) system, in which candidates of all parties appear on the same ballot and are ranked in order of preference. RCV was narrowly adopted by Alaska voters in 2020 with backing from GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s allies in the state. The system allowed the liberal Republican senator to stave off a primary challenge from a more conservative candidate in 2022.
An initiative (Measure 2) seeking to repeal RCV will appear on Alaska’s 2026 ballot. The measure’s chief opposition campaign is heavily bankrolled by out-of-state forces tied to Democrats’ dark money network, as The Federalist previously reported.
Johnson’s records requests were sent the same day The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Justice Department has “expanded its ongoing criminal investigation” into the Alaska scandal by “sending dozens of new grand jury subpoenas” over the matter. An agency official purportedly told the outlet that prosecutors “are exploring whether to bring charges alleging a conspiracy to violate voters’ rights.”
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has also ordered an inquiry into the matter.
