Alaska!

That is all I have to say, and you know exactly what I mean.

There are two Dan Sullivans on the ballot:

Sullivan, Dan S. (Registered Republican) Incumbent

Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.

Can you tell the difference? Can you pick out which Sullivan is the Republican? Can you tell who is the Independent?

That is what the battle is about! The Republicans are hopping up and down, pointing fingers! "SEE! SEE! See what they did!"

Okay, how did he get on the ballot? For that, we have to look at how you get on the ballot in Alaska. In most states, you have to collect "X" number of signatures from voters, but not in Alaska.

In Alaska, all you have to do is pay $100 and... voilà, you are on the ballot!

The Alaska Supreme Court has put in its 2¢!

In June, CBS News reported that…

The battle of the Dan Sullivans is on. 

The Alaska Supreme Court ruled Monday that a Republican candidate with the same name as GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan can challenge the sitting lawmaker in the state's Senate primary in August. The high court upheld a ruling from a lower court judge that cleared the way for Daniel J. Sullivan to appear on the primary ballot, reversing a decision by state officials earlier this month that he was ineligible because he was allegedly trying to confuse voters.

The state Supreme Court directed Alaska's Division of Elections to decide how Daniel J. Sullivan should be listed on the ballot "within the confines of existing Alaska ballot design law."

The Alaska Supreme Court ruled on whether the state could keep the second Sullivan off the ballot. The court said no. The feds have zero jurisdiction over Alaska!

Verdict writes:

Yet the fact that there is a genuine reason for concern does not mean that there is a legal basis for the DOJ’s lawsuit. There is not, as should be apparent to anyone with even a rudimentary legal education who reads the DOJ complaint. It cites no provision of federal law obligating states to mitigate any confusing effect of candidates with similar names. That’s because there is no applicable federal law.

But you know darn well this is going to the Supreme Court!

However, I don’t think that it will end in the courts; I think that it will end on January 3rd, when Congress begins the new term and swears in members as mandated by the Twentieth Amendment.

The question will be… "Will Congress vote for the party or the voters?"

If there is a problem, then it is with Alaska state law. Here in Connecticut, you need 1% of voters to sign a petition for you to get on the ballot in Alaska the is simply too low. But that is a state decision to make, not a federal one!

Then we have this...

[/Political Analysis]