Dan Sullivan

Dan Sullivan is a Republican U.S. Senator from Alaska, first elected in 2014 and sworn in on January 6, 2015. Born in Fairview Park, Ohio, he earned a B.A. in economics from Harvard University and a joint Juris Doctor and Master of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University. Sullivan's career began in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he served on active duty from 1993 to 1997. He later continued his service as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Marine Corps Reserve. His early legal career included clerking for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Alaska Supreme Court, followed by work in private practice in Anchorage. Sullivan's public service includes significant roles at both the federal and state levels. In the George W. Bush administration, he served as a White House Fellow and later as Assistant Secretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs. In 2009, he was appointed Attorney General of Alaska by Governor Sarah Palin, and in 2010, he became the Commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. In these roles, he focused on combating domestic violence, protecting individual rights, and managing the state's extensive energy and mineral resources. In the Senate, Sullivan serves on the Committees on Armed Services, Veterans' Affairs, Environment and Public Works, and Commerce, Science, and Transportation. He has focused on military readiness, Arctic security, and expanding Alaska's energy production. His tenure has been marked by efforts to reform federal permitting processes and push back against what he describes as federal overreach into state land and resource management.

Senator Sullivan is a strong advocate for domestic energy production, frequently supporting projects such as the Willow Project and development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to ensure energy security and job growth. In foreign policy, he emphasizes a 'peace through strength' approach, advocating for a robust military presence to counter Russian and Chinese activities in the Arctic and Indo-Pacific regions. On healthcare, he has criticized the Affordable Care Act and worked to modify Medicaid funding formulas to better reflect the high cost of care in Alaska. Regarding immigration, Sullivan supports enhanced border security measures and has historically opposed 'amnesty' or a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. He also promotes balancing resource development with environmental protection, arguing that U.S. energy production maintains higher environmental standards than that of foreign adversaries.