By SUZANNE DOWNING
Oct. 26, 2026 – Sen. Lisa Murkowski says Alaska’s ballot clearly distinguishes between the two Senate candidates named Sullivan.
Mary Peltola’s campaign is fighting the Justice Department’s lawsuit over potential voter confusion.
But a review by The Alaska Story of 21 translated general-election sample ballots found that a key identifying word — “Incumbent” — remains in English on all the ballots. The matter was brought to light by a X.com account run by a New York political analyst, CINYC9.
The samples cover Bristol Bay Yup’ik, Chevak Cup’ik, General Central Yup’ik, Hooper Bay Yup’ik, Northern Inupiaq, Norton Sound Kotlik Yup’ik, Yukon Yup’ik, Aleut, Nunivak Cupig and Tagalog across several House and judicial districts.
Although surrounding ballot text includes translated wording, the designation identifying Dan S. Sullivan as the senator currently holding office is left in English.
That raises a practical question about assurances that the ballot adequately protects against confusion: Does an English designation communicate the intended distinction to voters who rely on translated materials?
A Yup’ik sample reviewed by The Alaska Story lists “Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.” on one line and “Sullivan, Dan S.” on another.
The senator’s entry includes a Republican affiliation incorporating Yup’ik wording, followed by “Incumbent.” The other Sullivan’s entry has neither a party designation nor an incumbent label.
The different first names, middle initials and party information provide additional distinctions. But the word specifically identifying the sitting senator has no accompanying translation in the samples reviewed.
Murkowski has opposed the Justice Department’s intervention, saying the state has already addressed the similar names.
“Alaskans don’t need any help voting for their preferred candidates,” she wrote, adding that Alaska had clearly distinguished the candidates on the ballot.
Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have sought to intervene and dismiss the federal case. Their attorneys argue that the National Voter Registration Act does not authorize the Justice Department to intervene over candidate names and ballot presentation.
The untranslated designation adds a language-access question to that dispute. The presence of identifying information and a voter’s ability to understand that information are separate issues.
As The Alaska Story previously reported, the Justice Department is seeking to delay certification under circumstances in which Sen. Sullivan loses and votes for Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., the Democrats’ decoy candidate, could have affected the outcome.
Attorney General Todd Blanche has defended the litigation as an effort to allow investigation of potentially decisive voter confusion. The other Sullivan denies that his candidacy is intended to mislead voters.
Peltola and the DSCC have requested dismissal before the Nov. 3 election, arguing that the pending lawsuit could undermine confidence in a potential Peltola victory.
The translated samples do not establish that voters have mistakenly selected the wrong Sullivan. They do, however, complicate the claim that adding “Incumbent” settles the question of clarity for voters using Alaska’s translated election materials.
One thought on “Lost in translation? ‘Incumbent’ stays in English on Alaska’s ‘translated’ Senate ballots”
I’m sure AFN and woman’s organizations are teaching classes to their constituents on how to vote for Decoy Dan. “Constituent” is too big of a word for most of these people. They struggled spelling “Murkowski” but the AK Supreme Court allowed for misspellings. Little wonder Alaska public schools ranks so low in national tests for English, Math and Spelling. A state full of retards.