Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy is taking decisive action to protect the integrity of the state's electoral process, ordering an investigation into an alleged scheme to manipulate the U.S. Senate race.
The probe comes in response to reporting that suggests associates of Democratic candidate Mary Peltola and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) worked to recruit a spoiler candidate to run against incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan.
By fielding a second candidate with the same name, the alleged plot aimed to sow confusion among voters and dilute support for the Republican incumbent.
Senator Sullivan has rightly demanded that his opponent come clean regarding what he describes as a scandal of the highest order, while Senator Lisa Murkowski has condemned the Democratic campaign's conduct as a pattern of lies.
Despite the denials from the Peltola camp and the DSCC, Governor Dunleavy has directed the Department of Public Safety to determine if this coordinated effort violated state law and whether criminal or civil action is warranted.
While the Alaska Supreme Court previously declined to remove the second candidate from the ballot, the new evidence brought to light by recent reporting has prompted the state to revisit the matter.
With control of Congress hanging in the balance, the attempt to subvert the will of Alaskan voters through deceptive ballot tactics is a desperate move that demands a full accounting.
Tags
