共和党参议员丹·沙利文周日表示，他怀疑其民主党对手关于自己不知情其核心政治助手招募一名同名退休教师丹·沙利文参选以混淆选民的说法，这场竞选可能决定哪个党派控制参议院。
NICHOLAS RICCARDI WASHINGTON — Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan said Sunday that he doubted claims by his Democratic opponent that she had no idea her top political aides were involved in recruiting a retired schoolteacher also named Dan Sullivan onto the ballot to confuse voters in a race that could determine which party controls the Senate.
共和党长期以来怀疑前众议员玛丽·佩尔托拉及其竞选团队是第二个沙利文出现在选票背后的推手。他们表示，上周《纽约时报》基于对佩尔托拉前竞选经理的采访、短信记录和竞选财务文件的报道证实了他们的怀疑，文件显示一名试图招募诱饵候选人的操盘手获得了支持佩尔托拉的团体的资金。
Republicans have long suspected that Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman, and her campaign were behind the presence of the second Sullivan on the ballot. They say their suspicions were confirmed by a New York Times report last week that was based on interviews with Peltola’s ex-campaign manager, text messages and campaign finance documents showing that an operative trying to recruit decoy candidates was paid by a group backing Peltola.
“绝不可能这事持续了一年他们却不告知她，”沙利文在大选前两天接受CNN《国情咨文》节目采访时说，“她被抓住撒谎了，还在对阿拉斯加民众、媒体、我们所有人撒谎。”佩尔托拉坚称与招募另一位沙利文无关，并称对此事的关注是对阿拉斯加人面临的主要问题——由共和党人唐纳德·特朗普发动的伊朗战争导致的高物价——的“转移视线”。她的竞选团队也否认涉案，专注于参议院竞选的全国民主党机构——民主党参议员竞选委员会——同样否认。
“There is no way this went on for a year that they weren’t informing her,” Sullivan told CNN’s “State of the Union,” two days before Election Day. “She got caught lying, and she’s still lying to the Alaskan people, the media, to all of us.”Peltola has insisted she had nothing to do with recruiting the other Sullivan and has called the attention on it a “distraction” from the main issues facing Alaskans of high prices caused by the war in Iran launched by Republican Donald Trump. Her campaign has also denied involvement, as has the national Democratic operation that focuses on Senate races, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
周五集会前，当被问及其竞选团队是否可能有人参与招募另一位候选人时，佩尔托拉对KTUU电视台表示：“我毫无头绪，我真的毫无头绪。”这位第二个沙利文在选票上列为小丹尼尔·J·沙利文，而现任参议员列为丹·S·沙利文并标注为共和党现任议员，他长期坚称是自愿参选。
Before a rally Friday, Peltola was asked if it was possible someone on her campaign was involved in recruiting the other candidate: “I have no idea,” she told KTUU. “I honestly have no idea.”The second Sullivan, who is listed on the ballot as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. while the senator is listed as Dan S. Sullivan and marked as a Republican incumbent, has long insisted he ran on his own accord .
特朗普下令其司法部提起诉讼，试图阻止对佩尔托拉可能获胜的认证，在《纽约时报》报道发表后，他呼吁起诉这位民主党候选人。联邦特工涌入阿拉斯加，并在该案中发出了传票，尽管共和党人——包括与特朗普合作的人——也有支持“诱饵候选人”参选的悠久历史。这位共和党州长下令展开调查，并暗示他可能不会认证佩尔托拉可能的胜利。
Trump, who ordered his Department of Justice to file a lawsuit to stop certification of a possible Peltola win, called for the Democratic candidate to be prosecuted after the Times story was published. Federal agents descended on Alaska and issued subpoenas in the case, even though Republicans, including ones working with Trump, also have a long history of backing decoy candidates in elections. The governor, a Republican, has ordered an investigation and suggested he may not certify a possible Peltola victory.
负责参议院竞选的共和党团体负责人、南卡罗来纳州参议员蒂姆·斯科特在NBC的《与媒体见面》节目中表示，刑事指控可能说得通。
South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who heads the GOP group that focuses on Senate races, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that criminal charges might make sense.
“我们知道，候选人与其他方面串通合作以迷惑选民是犯罪行为，”他说。
“We know that it is criminal for candidates to work in collusion with other parties to confuse voters,” he said.
马里兰州民主党众议员杰米·拉斯金表示，与选票上其他候选人同名的情况“到处都在发生”，尽管他说推广这种策略不是他会做的事。
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said candidates with the same name as others on the ballot “happens all over the place,” though he said promoting such a strategy is not something he would do.
“这是愚蠢的政治手段，”他对NBC说。“没人会那样做，玛丽·佩尔托拉已表示她与此无关。”
“It’s stupid politics,” he told NBC. “Nobody would do that, and Mary Peltola has said she had nothing to do with it.”
参议员伯尼·桑德斯表示赞同。“在我看来，民主党在阿拉斯加所做的似乎相当愚蠢，”这位佛蒙特州无党派人士在CBS的《面对国家》节目中说。“这不违法。这是每次选举都会发生的事。”曾任阿拉斯加州检察长的萨利文表示，他将“让律师们”决定是否构成犯罪。但他确实认为第二个萨利文的存在会影响选举结果。“我肯定会因为那个诡计而失去很多选票，”萨利文说。
Sen. Bernie Sanders agreed. “What the Democrats did in Alaska seems to me to be pretty dumb,” the Vermont independent said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”“It’s not illegal. It’s what happens in every election.”Sullivan, a former Alaska attorney general, said he would “let the lawyers” determine whether crimes were committed. He did say he thought the presence of the second Sullivan would affect the election. “I’m sure I’m going to lose a lot of votes to that trickery,” Sullivan said.
当被问及是否会敦促州政府不认证佩尔托拉获胜时，萨利文也避而不谈，随后表示，“我将接受选举结果。”两位候选人在最后几天里穿越阿拉斯加辽阔的土地进行竞选。
Sullivan also demurred when asked if he would urge the state not to certify a Peltola win, before saying, “I’m going to accept the results of the election.”Both candidates have spent the final days campaigning through Alaska’s vast landscape.
周六晚上，萨利文在安克雷奇以北的一家娱乐中心举办的“车尾箱万圣节”活动上分发糖果，他开玩笑说他的装扮是“真正的丹·萨利文”。
On Saturday night, Sullivan handed out candy at a “trunk-or-treat” event at a recreation center north of Anchorage, where he quipped his costume was “the real Dan Sullivan.