WASHINGTON — At a campaign rally late Tuesday with Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), President Donald Trump ranted about Dan Sullivan — the other one, the retired teacher in Petersburg — also running for Senate. Both will appear on the November ballot as GOP candidates, distinguished by their middle initials and the word “incumbent” next to the senator’s name.

“It’s just cheating and terrible,” Trump griped of the teacher, calling him “the fake Dan Sullivan” and someone “put up by the Dumb-o-crats.”

“The guy never voted. He never went, never did anything, the fake,” he said, later adding, “We gotta get Dan Sullivan — I call him the real Dan Sullivan.”

Teacher Sullivan, as we’ll call him, wasn’t watching Trump’s rally in Wasilla. But he told HuffPost he’d like to correct the record on a few things the president claimed.

“How could I be a fake Dan Sullivan? That is my real name! :)” he said in an email.

“I’ve done probably a dozen interviews addressing my intentions and my resume ― except for the voting record ... he just made that one up,” teacher Sullivan said of Trump. “My voting record is public and I vote a lot.”

“How could I be a fake Dan Sullivan? That is my real name!”

via Associated Press

Teacher Sullivan has said he’s running because he’s not happy with high gas prices, the war in Iran and “the politics of division” he sees his senator engaging in. He’s broken no laws by running and insists it’s a sincere bid for public office versus claims that he’s a spoiler candidate for Democrats hoping to siphon votes away from Sen. Sullivan.

Alaska uses a ranked choice system of voting, meaning voters in November will rank their preferred candidates in each race, regardless of party, and whoever gets the most votes wins. Four Senate candidates advanced in the August primary, including both Sullivans and Democratic nominee Mary Peltola, who pulled the most votes and is leading in the polls.

Teacher Sullivan pulled about 2.5% of that statewide vote, which might sound tiny but could go a long way in a Senate race as competitive as this one.

“By mistake, he got 2.4%. That’s a lot. That’s too much. That could be the difference,” Trump said at the campaign rally. “You gotta remember: Dan Sullivan. Republican. In-cum-bent.”

It’s certainly possible some voters were confused by the two Sullivans on the ballot and voted for teacher Sullivan by mistake. But a number of Alaskan voters told HuffPost last month they think it’s hilarious he’s running and want him to stay in.

“He’s Alaskan. He’s from Petersburg,” said Ryan Moldenhauer, 28, of Anchorage. “Like, he has every right to run.”

“Sen. Sullivan’s pissed because his campaign materials say ‘Sullivan,’” cackled Linda, 75, an independent voter in Anchorage who is no fan of her current senator.

“Even if that was his only reason to run, so what?” Linda, who only gave her first name, said of teacher Sullivan possibly running as a spoiler. “He met the qualifications to be on the ballot. There’s other people probably who have worse reasons to run.”

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