Chuck Schumer swore he had nothing to do with the scheme to put a fake Dan Sullivan on Alaska's Senate ballot.
Then the New York Times confirmed his national operatives ran that scheme for close to a year.
Now Jonathan Turley says the lawyers who ran it are about to need lawyers of their own.
Democrats Ran an Election Fraud Scheme in Alaska Using a Fake Dan Sullivan
Sen. Dan Sullivan is Alaska's Republican incumbent, running for reelection against Democrat Mary Peltola – a former congresswoman and the Democrats' best chance to flip a red Senate seat this November.
Alaska's top-four primary system makes the state uniquely vulnerable: every candidate from every party runs on the same August ballot, and the top four vote-getters advance to November's general election regardless of party affiliation.
Democrats allegedly exploited that system by recruiting a man from Petersburg, Alaska who just happened to share the incumbent's exact name – Dan Sullivan – to run for the same Senate seat.
In a close race, even 2 or 3 percent of voters accidentally picking the wrong Dan Sullivan could flip the election to Peltola.
Amber Lee's Fingerprints Connected Decoy Dan Directly to Chuck Schumer
Democrats spent six months denying any connection to "Decoy Dan" – and the evidence against that denial started appearing before the ink was dry on his filing papers.
The denial collapsed the moment Fox News Digital traced the metadata on Decoy Dan's campaign launch press release directly back to Amber Lee – a left-wing Democratic operative and documented Peltola supporter.
When Dan J. Sullivan filed his Senate candidacy papers in June, his campaign website, logo, letterhead, and color scheme were nearly identical to the incumbent's materials that Sen. Sullivan had used for 13 years.
Sullivan himself described them as "98% similar."
The NRSC filed a complaint with the FEC alleging Dan J. Sullivan and Amber Lee coordinated a scheme to launch a Senate campaign with no intent to win – only to confuse voters and drain votes from the Republican incumbent.
State election director Carol Beecher agreed, disqualifying Decoy Dan in June and finding his candidacy served "the purpose of confusing or misleading voters."
The Alaska Supreme Court reversed that decision, put Decoy Dan back on the ballot, and in August's primary he pulled 2.5% of the vote – a margin that could flip November's general election.
Schumer's office denied everything: the Senate Minority Leader had no knowledge of the scheme and his organization had no involvement.
Nine days later, a Schumer-controlled political committee ran an ad starring Alan Harris – the romantic partner of Amber Lee, Decoy Dan's Democrat campaign strategist.
National Review also tied the same Democrat network behind Decoy Dan to Nebraska Senate candidate Dan Osborn's campaign – this was not a one-state scheme.
A political operative named Frank Artiles ran the same playbook in Florida's 2020 state Senate race – paid a man to run as a fake candidate under a rival's name to siphon votes – and was convicted of conspiracy for it.
The same-name trick isn't just electoral sleaze – it's a federal crime when there's coordination behind it.
Turley: Criminal Charges Coming as DOJ Probes the Alaska Election Fraud
The New York Times confirmed Thursday that Peltola knew about the Decoy Dan scheme – her top aides kept her aware as they participated alongside national Democrat operatives who ultimately answer to Schumer.
George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley went on Fox News's America's Newsroom and told the lawyers inside this scheme exactly what they are facing.
"At this point, I think Peltola's lawyers, those campaign lawyers who allegedly played a role in this have to remove themselves," Turley said, calling them "potential targets or witnesses."
"I think this is going to quickly develop quite significant criminal and civil liability issues for a remarkably large number of people," Turley said.
Turley flagged the campaign filings with state and federal authorities – documents the law requires to be accurate – and the Times showed they are full of false statements.
DOJ investigators have been probing wire fraud and election conspiracy charges – federal offenses that carry serious prison time.
The DOJ has already asked a federal court to block Alaska's election certification if Peltola wins and Decoy Dan's votes prove decisive – and Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy ordered a separate state investigation into her campaign.
"You don't want your client to be the last one without a chair when the music stops," Turley warned.
"There will be a lot of cooperation here," Turley said – and when cooperation starts, everyone at the bottom faces pressure to give up the names above them.
https://twitter.com/eclipsethis2003/status/2115063544714588198
Schumer told reporters he knew nothing about the scheme – then his own political committee ran an ad starring the boyfriend of the operative who built Decoy Dan's campaign, and the gap between what he claimed and what his people did is exactly what prosecutors love to show a grand jury.
That Florida conviction wasn't just precedent – it was a road map, and everyone behind Alaska's scheme knows exactly where it leads.
Democrats tried to steal a Senate seat, and the lawyers who helped them do it are now watching their own careers disappear – one subpoena at a time.
Sources:
- "Dan Sullivan vs. Dan Sullivan: GOP Blasts Clone Candidate Lookalike Who Enters Alaska Senate Race," Fox News Digital, June 2026.
- "Chuck Schumer Denied Ties to 'Decoy Dan Sullivan' – Then Featured the 'Sham' Alaska Senate Candidate's Campaign 'Rep' in an Ad," Washington Free Beacon, 2026.
- "How Democratic Operatives Got a Copycat Candidate on the Alaska Senate Ballot to Confuse Voters," National Review, 2026.
- "NRSC: Dan Sullivan Running Sham Campaign Against Senator," Washington Examiner, June 9, 2026.
- Jonathan Turley, America's Newsroom, Fox News, October 29, 2026.
- "Dem Operatives Put Copycat Sullivan on Alaska Ballot," Legal Insurrection, 2026.
