DOJ sues Alaska to block Senate certification over two Dan Sullivans on ballot

Left · 2The Justice Department sued Alaska election officials on Thursday, 22 October, asking a federal court to block certification of the state's U.S. Senate result if Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan does not win the 3 November election. 1 2 Left · 2The department argues that the presence on the ballot of Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher and former Forest Service employee, could mislead voters seeking to back the senator, and that the outcome would be "tainted" by his inclusion. 2 1 Mixed · 2The filing asks the court to find that Sullivan would have won had every vote for Dan J. Sullivan gone to him under Alaska's ranked-choice process, and says defendants should "not certify any election result that may be impacted by voter confusion." 2 3

Mixed · 2President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday, "I'm the one that said 'do it'," and has called ranked-choice voting a "Democrat scam" and said Democrats put the second Sullivan on the ballot to confuse voters; Dan J. Sullivan has denied any such intent or contact with the Peltola campaign. 4 1 Mixed · 2On Sunday 25 October, Attorney General Todd Blanche, a former personal lawyer to Trump, defended the suit on CNN's State of the Union and CBS's Face the Nation, saying Trump is not trying to take over a state election "in any way, shape, or form" and that the DOJ is "not laying any groundwork" for that. 5 6 Mixed · 2Blanche described the suit as meant to "put guardrails in place" so ballots are preserved to assess voter confusion, saying "It's not saying, 'Don't certify,'" but that if a court finds the result was decided by confusion rather than the will of the voters, states should not certify. 5 3

Right · 1The Washington Examiner noted that the DOJ's filing itself urges officials not to certify if voters may have been confused, which it said sits uneasily with that description. 3 Mixed · 2Blanche declined to say whether Trump ordered the filing, saying he would "never, ever, ever" discuss his communications with the president, and became openly frustrated when CNN's Dana Bash raised January 6, calling the question "crazy." 1 7 Centre · 2Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola, a former congresswoman, called the suit "flagrant, flagrant corruption"; Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said the DOJ "should never have filed" it, and Trump then attacked Murkowski on Truth Social as the "Republicans' Worst Senator." 5 4

Mixed · 2Peltola's campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have moved to intervene and dismiss the suit, calling it "an unprecedented pre-emptive strike on democratic elections," and asked for a ruling before election day; the court had not set a hearing date. 2 8 Centre · 1Their filing cites Trump's Truth Social posts and says they fear the suit will be used to "lay the groundwork for unlawful efforts to challenge a potential Peltola victory." 8 Left · 2Legal and election experts told NBC News the case is on shaky ground, since states and localities, not the federal government, run and certify elections; Al Jazeera said experts expect such a move to be deemed illegal. 2 1

Mixed · 2Alaska has already taken steps on the issue: after Dan J. Sullivan Jr. was removed from the ballot in June, a court reversed that decision, and the November ballot will label Dan S. Sullivan as "registered Republican" and "incumbent" while Dan J. Sullivan Jr. appears with the suffix and no party. 2 5 Mixed · 2Trump said on Sunday that "a lot of people don't know what incumbent means" and that the ballot is "illegal because it's unfair". 5 6 Mixed · 2The race is rated a toss-up and polls show Peltola narrowly ahead; the suit is one of several federal election actions, including a suit over California mail ballots, and election officials told Reuters they are preparing for possible federal interference. 2 6