Judge Thomas Matthews Restores Petersburg’s Dan J. Sullivan to Alaska Primary Ballot

A judge ruled Friday that a man with the same name and party affiliation as Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan is eligible to challenge the senator in the August primary.

“Superior Court Judge Thomas Matthews’ ruling overturns a June 15 decision”

AP News

Superior Court Judge Thomas Matthews overturned a June 15 decision by Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher that had disqualified the challenger and kept him off the ballot.

Al Jazeera

Matthews said the Division’s decision to exclude Dan J. Sullivan because his candidacy was not “in good faith” was not based on the U.S. Constitution, Alaska law or the division’s own regulations.

The ruling can be appealed to the state Supreme Court, and attorneys for the state said Tuesday is the deadline for a final ruling so ballots for the Aug. 18 primary can be printed.

The dispute centers on a retired teacher from the small fishing community of Petersburg who filed to challenge the incumbent and whose candidacy was initially certified as Dan J. Sullivan while the senator was listed as Dan S. Sullivan.

Matthews found that the Division of Elections lacked legal authority to remove Dan J. Sullivan from the ballot based on a newly created “good-faith” standard that does not exist in the U.S. Constitution, Alaska law or state election regulations.

In court filings, Alaska Department of Law attorney Rachel Witty and outside attorneys Christopher Murray and Michael Francisco wrote that “The Constitution does not require States to place a sham candidate on the ballot.”

Alaska Public Media

The state’s attorneys argued the challenger’s candidacy was intended to confuse voters, while Dan J. Sullivan’s attorney said he expected the Division to appeal and could not comment until the Alaska Supreme Court rules.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Alaska Republican Party argued the candidacy could mislead voters because both Republicans requested similar ballot names, according to USA TODAY’s account of the dispute.

Sen. Sullivan has accused the challenger Sullivan of coordinating with Democrats and the campaign of Democratic former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, and Peltola’s campaign and state Democrats denied the allegation, as did the challenger.

The case is expected to be appealed quickly to the Alaska Supreme Court, with a hearing set for Monday and an expected decision from the court on Tuesday, according to USA TODAY.

“an expected decision from the court on Tuesday”

USA Today

The Alaska election system described by AP is a top-four primary in which the top four candidates from the primary, regardless of party, move on to the ranked-choice November general election.

AP reported that the senator and allies, including the National Republican Senatorial Committee, condemned the challenger’s efforts to join the race, arguing his presence could confuse voters.

The Washington Examiner said the primary election is on August 18 and that the case was expected to be appealed by Monday before the Division begins printing primary ballots on Tuesday.

With the court’s ruling in place for now, the dispute over whether Dan J. Sullivan’s candidacy can be evaluated for “good faith” is poised to shape who appears on Alaska’s Republican primary ballot ahead of the Aug. 18 contest.