ANCHORAGE, ALASKA — Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan’s campaign account on X was temporarily suspended Friday night after the platform flagged it under rules governing inauthentic or impersonating accounts, adding another unusual twist to Alaska’s already chaotic U.S. Senate race.
The account, @DanSullivan_AK, disappeared Friday before being restored Saturday morning or early afternoon. Sullivan’s campaign said X informed it that the account had violated rules against “inauthentic accounts.” X did not publicly explain what triggered the suspension.
The incident comes amid an extraordinary dispute involving another Senate candidate with almost the same name. Retired Petersburg teacher Dan J. Sullivan is also on the ballot alongside incumbent Dan S. Sullivan, Democrat Mary Peltola and Republican Gerald Heikes. The second Sullivan has denied running to intentionally confuse voters.
Sullivan’s campaign and Republican officials accused Peltola’s allies of reporting the senator’s X account as fake, but they provided no public evidence establishing that claim. Peltola’s campaign denied involvement, calling the allegation “silly and unsubstantiated.”
The controversy over the two Sullivans has escalated sharply since reporting showed Democratic operatives explored recruiting candidates with the incumbent senator’s name. The Justice Department has issued more than 40 subpoenas and document-preservation requests as part of an investigation, though authorities have not publicly identified any criminal charges against Peltola or her campaign.
A separate Trump administration lawsuit seeking to block certification of the election under certain circumstances was dismissed Sunday. A federal judge ruled that investigating individual ballots cast for the second Sullivan would be infeasible and conflict with Alaska’s secret-ballot protections.
The temporary X suspension underscores how the unusual same-name controversy has spilled beyond the ballot itself just days before Election Day.
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