A man with the same name and party affiliation as Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan is eligible to challenge the senator in the August primary, a judge ruled Friday.
Dan Sullivan isn’t exactly a unique name. I bet there are thousands of people in the US with that name, and at least dozens in Alaska alone. Why should one guy get to own that name for elections, and disqualify any challengers who share the same name? What about even more common names like John Smith?
I get that it creates a unique challenge to design the ballot so that it’s clear. I also don’t see that as a difficult task, given that they have different middle initials and one will be listed as the incumbent. Their campaigns will probably emphasize the initials, with something like “The S is for Serious” (except better).
Dan Sullivan isn’t exactly a unique name. I bet there are thousands of people in the US with that name, and at least dozens in Alaska alone. Why should one guy get to own that name for elections, and disqualify any challengers who share the same name? What about even more common names like John Smith?
I get that it creates a unique challenge to design the ballot so that it’s clear. I also don’t see that as a difficult task, given that they have different middle initials and one will be listed as the incumbent. Their campaigns will probably emphasize the initials, with something like “The S is for Serious” (except better).