A conservative government-transparency group filed a formal complaint with federal election regulators on Tuesday, alleging that “Decoy Dan” Sullivan, a retired Alaska teacher challenging his namesake, Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R-AK), illegally coordinated with a leftist organization attempting to defeat the Republican incumbent.
The complaint, filed with the Federal Election Commission by Americans for Public Trust, accuses the challenger Daniel J. Sullivan’s campaign of unlawful collusion with the 907 Initiative, a Left-leaning group that has poured roughly $1.5 million into political advertisements opposing the sitting senator during the current election cycle.
At the center of the dispute is Amber Lee, a veteran Democratic political consultant who worked on the retired teacher’s campaign while simultaneously serving as a board member for the 907 Initiative. Federal law prohibits individuals from concurrently assisting a political candidate while holding a leadership role for a group running targeted advertising campaigns designed to benefit that candidate’s race.
According to the filing, the 907 Initiative directed approximately $575,000 toward negative ads against the incumbent Sullivan during the final three months of the primary election cycle. APT pointed out that just before “Decoy Dan” officially declared his candidacy in late May, the 907 Initiative launched a wave of political spots criticizing the Republican senator. Public disclosures indicate that the campaign for “Decoy Dan” later owed Lee’s consulting firm more than $4,300 for political services.
“You can’t both work for the campaign and work for the outside group that’s running millions of dollars in advertisements that’s benefiting the campaign that you’re working for,” said Caitlin Sutherland, the executive director of Americans for Public Trust.
Representatives for the 907 Initiative rejected the allegations, saying Lee serves as an unpaid volunteer board member and is not an employee. The organization insisted that it operated completely independently from the candidate and had no knowledge of Lee’s private political consulting work until it was publicly reported.
The dispute is the latest twist in a political contest that could determine control of the United States Senate. The challenger, a 69-year-old former teacher from Petersburg, registered as a Republican just days before entering the race. Critics and GOP strategists quickly dubbed him “Decoy Dan,” accusing him of mounting a bad-faith effort intended to confuse voters and take support away from the incumbent to benefit former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola.
Although state election officials originally attempted to disqualify the retired teacher over allegations of deceptive campaign tactics, state courts ultimately ruled that he met the constitutional requirements to run.
“Decoy Dan” received about 2.5% of the primary vote but advanced under Alaska’s top-four election system. Peltola led the primary with nearly 49.5%, while Sen. Sullivan secured 41.4%. But in the RealClearPolitics aggregate, Peltola leads by only two points.
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