Alaska election officials rule that a man seeking the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate under the name “Dan Sullivan” is ineligible to appear on the August primary ballot because his filing is not properly accepted. The decision targets a challenger named Dan J. Sullivan (also reported as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.) who shares the same name and party as incumbent Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan. Multiple outlets report that complaints allege the candidacy was filed in a way intended to confuse or mislead voters. As a result, the election director blocks the challenger from the ballot, leaving only the incumbent’s name on the primary line.

The challenger contests the disqualification in court. The Alaska Supreme Court hears arguments in a separate procedural case described by some outlets, and a judge later reverses the earlier election-office determination, allowing the challenger to remain on the ballot. Several reports characterize the dispute as creating uncertainty ahead of the primary, with officials’ initial disqualification and subsequent judicial rulings determining who appears on the ballot.