Trump demands Mary Peltola quit Alaska Senate race, calls for prosecution over alleged voter fraud
WASHINGTON, DC: Donald Trump urged Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola to withdraw from Alaska’s Senate race and called for her criminal prosecution after reports emerged that members of her campaign had tried to recruit someone with a name similar to that of Republican Sen Dan Sullivan.
Trump condemned the alleged move as voter fraud, saying everyone involved deserved criminal charges.
Speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday, October 28, before heading to Ohio for a campaign event, Trump accused Peltola and her supporters of attempting to deceive voters ahead of the November 3 election.
Trump demands Mary Peltola quit Alaska Senate race
Peltola’s campaign has denied involvement in recruiting Daniel J Sullivan Jr, who is running for the Senate seat, while the Justice Department is investigating his appearance on the ballot.
🚨 HOLY CRAP! President Trump demands Mary Peltola (D) "RESIGN FROM THE RACE" for Alaska US Senate and be "CRIMINALLY PROSECUTED" after the fake Dan Sullivan ballot scheme "They should be prosecuted. THAT'S VOTER FRAUD." 💯 "This guy, Dan Sullivan, just ran against Dan Sullivan. It turned out it was a scheme by the Democrats. That's what they do best. They cheat!" "They went to court and they knew nothing about it, they had nothing to do with it. So that's a fraud. It's a fraud to the public. And they had a Dan Sullivan running against Senator Dan Sullivan!" "The people won't be able to tell. IT'S A FRAUD. THEY GOT CAUGHT. It was a PLOT by the Democrat Party." He's right, it's time to kick her off the ballot. NO MORE GAMES. NO allowing cheating!
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 28, 2026
“Mary Peltola should resign from the race. I think she should be prosecuted criminally for what she did,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews before departing for Ohio to campaign for Republicans.
He said that any of Peltola’s allies who had worked to recruit Daniel J Sullivan to run against incumbent Republican Sen Dan Sullivan should also face criminal charges.
“They said they didn’t do it, and they did do it, and they got caught. And in fact, it was a plot by the Democrat Party, and frankly, they should be, I think they should be prosecuted. To me, that’s voter fraud at the highest level,” the president said.
The Justice Department is conducting an “aggressive criminal investigation” into J Sullivan’s appearance on the ballot, with subpoenas expected to be issued in the coming days, Fox News reported.
According to a report by The New York Times, some of Peltola’s top aides helped with the recruitment effort. Elisa Rios, who previously managed Peltola’s campaign, told the newspaper that although Peltola did not participate directly, she knew what was happening.
Peltola’s campaign pushed back against the allegations in a statement to the New York Post. It denied involvement in either Sullivan campaign and said Peltola was focused on lowering costs and addressing issues in Washington.
There were also reports that the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) had become involved in the discussions, but the committee denied the allegations.
DOJ probes ‘Decoy Dan’ ballot controversy in Alaska
Elisa Rios, Peltola’s former campaign manager, spoke to The New York Times about the effort to bring Daniel J Sullivan, whom his critics call “Decoy Dan,” into the race.
🚨 JUST IN: The REAL Sen. Dan Sullivan just TORCHED Mary Peltola for running a YEAR-LONG scheme to trick Alaskans, and treating them like they're STUPID "The candidate I'm running against had a SCHEME for over a year to try to TRICK Alaskans, and that shows TOTAL CONTEMPT for the people of the state of Alaska." They were treating Alaskans like they're kind of STUPID." "We're NOT stupid. We're SMART. And we know we shouldn't be electing a CORRUPT SENATOR who's been lying to the Alaska people directly to their FACES for over a year!"
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) October 29, 2026
“Alaskan voters need to know,” said Rios, who was ousted during a major campaign staff overhaul in August.
“There was a lot of speculation, and voters should get the full picture when making their decisions,” she added, noting that Peltola was not directly involved in the recruitment effort but was “definitely aware.”
Aides at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) were also reportedly involved in the effort, which allegedly aimed to divert votes from Sen Sullivan by creating confusion among voters. The DSCC denied any involvement.
“The Alaskans for Mary campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign,” Peltola’s campaign told The Post in a statement responding to the report. “Like Mary, our campaign is focused on lowering costs and fixing the rigged system in DC.”
State officials pushed back against the lawsuit, arguing that election staff had already clarified the candidates’ identities by labeling the incumbent and displaying their initials. They also argued that the federal government had no authority to interfere in Alaska’s elections to benefit a preferred candidate.
US District Judge Sharon Gleason is moving quickly as Election Day approaches. She could decide whether to dismiss the case as early as Friday.
Alaska’s Senate election will take place on November 3 and use ranked-choice voting to determine the winner.
Peltola came out on top in the August open primary and holds a narrow lead over Sen Sullivan, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling numbers cited by the New York Post.
