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US midterms: Alaskan in tight Senate race accuses Democrats of ‘election cheating’

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The Straits Times. (2026, November 4). US midterms: Alaskan in tight Senate race accuses Democrats of ‘election cheating’. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/us-midterms-alaskan-in-tight-senate-race-accuses-democrats-of-election-cheating

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

The Straits Times · collected 2026-11-04 · by The Straits Times

Quick Summary

On November 3, during US midterm elections, Alaska Republican Senator Dan Sullivan accused his Democratic opponent Mary Peltola of election cheating by allegedly recruiting a man with the same name as Sullivan to be a “decoy” candidate. The scandal has intensified competition in this tight Senate race, which could determine control of the Senate. Despite denials from Peltola and legal challenges from President Trump being dismissed, Sullivan remains focused on voter anger over the alleged cheating scheme potentially boosting his support among Alaskans.
Written by AI on 2026-11-04, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Mary Peltola's campaign, running for the U.S. Senate seat in Alaska against incumbent Republican Dan Sullivan, was involved in efforts to place another candidate named Dan J. Sullivan on the ballot to confuse voters. According to reports from The New York Times and other outlets, text messages between members of Peltola’s team discussed recruiting individuals with the same name as their opponent. Election authorities attempted to disqualify the second Dan Sullivan but failed to do so in time for the election.

The plan also reportedly involved creating a third-party "MAGA party" to siphon votes from incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan, though this idea was eventually abandoned. The race is seen as crucial because it could determine which party controls the Senate, with Democrats currently holding 47 seats compared to Republicans' 53.

On election day and in the immediate aftermath, Republican supporters expressed concern that they might have mistakenly voted for "Decoy Dan" Sullivan instead of incumbent Senator Dan S. Sullivan, raising fears about potential vote confusion. The New York Times investigation also revealed efforts by a Democratic PAC to send voter guides replacing Sen. Dan Sullivan with the spoiler candidate.

Incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan has accused Democrats of engaging in election cheating, highlighting this as one of the most significant election controversies in Alaska's history.

Written for “Alaska Senate Race Controversy” on 2026-11-04, grounded in this article and the 101 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.35, but all 2 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 127030: attributed speech only · logged 2026-11-04

Story

📰 Alaska Senate Race Controversy
Politics · 102 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 22% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Peltola says she "knew nothing about" the other Dan Sullivan Same event
CBS News
Hedges 0 of 10 claims Outlet record 65/100
Report on alleged ‘second Dan Sullivan’ effort emerges after nearly 1 in 10 Alaskans voted Same event
New York Post
Hedges 5 of 24 claims Outlet record 66/100
Alaska Senate candidate denies knowing about alleged plot to put two Dan Sullivans on ballot Different event
BBC News
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 5 of 23 claims Outlet record 68/100
“While both articles discuss the controversy surrounding two candidates named Dan Sullivan in the Alaska Senate race, they describe different moments in the ongoing scandal: Article A reports on Mary Peltola denying knowledge of the alleged scheme, while Article B covers Dan Sullivan accusing Democrats of election cheating hours before polls closed.”
Liberal media downplays Alaska ballot scandal while decrying GOP 'pouncing' Same event
Fox News
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 5 of 40 claims Outlet record 68/100
Alaska’s Dan Sullivan dupe: Letters to the Editor — Oct. 31, 2026 Same event
New York Post
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 4 of 32 claims Outlet record 66/100
Alaska voters weigh in on Dan Sullivan controversy as DOJ investigates Different event
CBS News
Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 65/100
“The articles discuss different aspects of Dan Sullivan's involvement in Alaska politics; one mentions voter reaction and DOJ investigation while the other focuses on accusations of election cheating.”
The unrig-the-system candidate in Alaska tried to rig the election Same event
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans strongly left Hedges 2 of 4 claims Outlet record 69/100
‘Decoy’ Dan Sullivan fallout hangs over battle for control of the Senate Different event
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 2 of 2 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A discusses the potential court fight and election certification issues following the Alaska Senate race, while Article B covers Dan Sullivan's accusation of 'election cheating' before polls closed on Nov 3.”
Revealed: Democrat operative at the center of Alaska Senate race scandal amid claims he recruited second Dan Sullivan to spoil Republican chances Different event
Daily Mail
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 5 of 32 claims Outlet record 69/100
“While both articles discuss the same scandal involving a second Dan Sullivan candidate in the Alaska Senate race, Article A focuses on revealing the Democrat operative involved and the initial allegations, while Article B reports on Republican Senator Dan Sullivan's accusation of 'election cheating' hours before polls closed, describing a different specific moment in the event timeline.”
Peltola denies knowing of 'any other candidate' on ballot besides herself, incumbent Different event
ABC News (US)
Hedges 2 of 28 claims Outlet record 67/100
“While both articles discuss accusations related to a similar scandal in Alaska's Senate race, they describe different moments: Article A is about Peltola denying knowledge of another candidate on the ballot, while Article B reports Sullivan accusing Democrats of election cheating hours before polls closed.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
23
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
22%
5 of 23 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
The Straits Times's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
102
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-04 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

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Running correction rate · 5 correction(s)
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Who wrote this

The Straits Times
2834 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 Americans went to the polls on Nov 3 in midterm elections that will determine who controls Congress for the final two years of President Donald Trump’s term.
2026-11-04 · assertive framing · Takeaways from the US midterm elections
🔮 It added that Martin had also made contact with the DSA in August and obtained the e-mail addresses of DSA members, after which they were added to a mailing list that sent them threatening messages, warning they could be arrested if they voted.
2026-11-04 · assertive framing · US midterms: Oklahoma City man charged over threatening letters to election officials ahead of polls
🔮 He will then begin meeting the political parties.
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🔮 As Binance publicly said it could easily reimburse any losses from the hack on Oct 30, employees were privately expressing doubts to one another that they would be paid bonuses this year, said people familiar with the matter.
2026-11-04 · assertive framing · Over sleepless nights, Binance fought to contain hack
🔮 “A transport minister in a country like Spain cannot remain in office after two accidents of such seriousness in less than a year, however different they may be, whether or not I bear direct responsibility,” Puente told Members of Parliament, referring to the latest tragedy and a January crash in Andalusia that claimed 46 lives.
2026-11-04 · assertive framing · Spanish transport minister offers resignation after deadly train crash
🔮 WASHINGTON, Nov 3 - Americans went to the polls on Tuesday in midterm elections that will determine who controls Congress for the final two years of President Donald Trump's term.
2026-11-04 · assertive framing · Takeaways from the US midterm elections
🔮 “We are witnessing the biggest election cheating scandal in the history of the state of Alaska – maybe one of the biggest in the US Senate’s history.”
2026-11-04 · mixed framing · US midterms: Alaskan in tight Senate race accuses Democrats of ‘election cheating’
🔮 Carney said the US had withdrawn some earlier demands, including one that would have given Washington final say over any trade deals that Canada might seek to sign with other nations.
2026-11-03 · assertive framing · Trump says US close to trade deal with Canada, Carney says work remains
Also by The Straits Times
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2026-11-04 · The Straits Times
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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 2834 articles by The Straits Times →

Topics

ANCHORAGE Alaska Democrats Republican Senate

Subjects

Sullivan PERSON · 7× Alaska GPE · 5× ANCHORAGE GPE · 3× Democrats NORP · 3× Peltola PERSON · 3× Alaskans NORP · 2× Democratic NORP · 2× Republican NORP · 2× Senate ORG · 2× Trump PERSON · 2×

Narrative

Hours before polls closed on Nov 3 in US midterm elections, Alaska Republican Senator Dan Sullivan denounced what he called “election cheating” by Democrats, highlighting a scandal that has rocked the 49th state’s midterm campaign.
framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-04
🔮 “We are witnessing the biggest election cheating scandal in the history of the state of Alaska – maybe one of the biggest in the US Senate’s history.”
2026-11-04 · The Straits Times
US midterms: Alaskan in tight Senate race accuses Democrats of ‘election cheating’ · mixed framing

Claims (23 extracted, 5 hedged)

Alaskan in tight Senate race accuses Democrats of ‘election cheating’ asserted
Alaskan → accuse → cheating
Hours before polls closed on Nov 3 in US midterm elections, Alaska Republican Senator Dan Sullivan denounced what he called “election cheating” by Democrats, highlighting a scandal that has rocked the 49th state’s midterm campaign. asserted
that → close → campaign
Sullivan has accused the campaign apparatus of his Democratic rival Mary Peltola of recruiting a man with the same name as the Republican lawmaker to be a “decoy” candidate. asserted
Sullivan → accuse → lawmaker
Despite the uproar, retired schoolteacher Daniel J. Sullivan’s name has remained on ballots. asserted
name → remain → ballots
Senator Sullivan, who is endorsed by US President Donald Trump, lashed out at his rival on Election Day. asserted
who → endorse → Day
“My opponent’s campaign is literally focused on misleading Alaskans, lying, and cheating,” the 61-year-old told reporters in Anchorage, Alaska’s most populous city. asserted
old → focus → Anchorage
“We are witnessing the biggest election cheating scandal in the history of the state of Alaska – maybe one of the biggest in the US Senate’s history.” asserted
We → witness → history
Peltola has denied any knowledge of the decoy candidate plot. “ asserted
Peltola → deny → plot
They are running scared. asserted
They → run → ?
They got nothing,” she said at a campaign event, according to a video posted on Nov 3 to her X account. uncertain
she → got → account
She did not mention the scandal in the clip. asserted
She → mention → clip
Polls show her and the senator essentially tied in a race that may well decide which US political party holds the majority in the Senate. uncertain
party → show → Senate
Should Sullivan lose, it could pave the way for Democrats to place a dramatic check on Trump’s power in Washington. uncertain
Democrats → lose → Washington
Last week The New York Times published a detailed account which claimed that Peltola’s campaign helped orchestrate the decoy candidate scheme, which Senator Sullivan said was designed to siphon votes away from the incumbent. asserted
Sullivan → publish → incumbent
“Unfortunately, the scheme is working,” he said. asserted
he → work → ?
“Thousands, likely, of Alaskans are going to mistakenly throw away their vote.” Trump, fuming over the mischief, has sought to preemptively challenge Alaska’s election results. asserted
Trump → go → results
The effort was rejected by a federal judge. asserted
effort → reject → judge
After casting his ballot in Anchorage, Sullivan said he was prepared to accept defeat if that’s what the results show, “once every legal vote is counted and certified.” But he believed the scandal, and how it has angered voters, could actually work in his favour. uncertain
it → cast → favour
“I think it drives turnout,” he said. asserted
he → think → turnout
Federal authorities have launched a criminal investigation into the matter. asserted
authorities → launch → matter
According to The Washington Post, the US Department of Justice has sent some 20 target letters in connection with the probe, including to a Democratic elections lawyer whose firm is said to represent Peltola. uncertain
firm → accord → Peltola
Sullivan declined to discuss any potential criminal implications. asserted
Sullivan → decline → implications
“I’ll let the lawyers and the prosecutors and the FBI make those determinations,” Sullivan said. asserted
Sullivan → let → determinations
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