DOJ sues over potential voter confusion in Alaska Senate race
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit alleging that the presence of a candidate named Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. could confuse voters in the Alaska Senate election, prompting reactions from President Trump, the candidates and state officials.
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit on Oct. 22 seeking to block certification of Alaska’s Senate election results if the vote is affected by confusion between incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan and retired teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., who share the same name. The complaint argues that the similarity could mislead voters and distort the outcome.
President Donald Trump said the issue represents “voter fraud at the highest level” and urged Democratic candidate Mary Peltola to resign. > "Peltola should resign from the race. I think she should be prosecuted criminally for what she did," Trump said.
Peltola denied any involvement in recruiting the second Dan Sullivan. > "I just want to clear the air. I knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot except for me and the incumbent," she told reporters.
The lawsuit cites the National Voter Registration Act, claiming the potential confusion threatens election integrity. Legal scholars noted that the Act primarily governs voter registration and questioned the suit’s legal basis. > "The complaint has zero legal merit and is one of the weakest lawsuits I have ever seen," Harvard Law professor Nicholas Stephanopoulos said.
Alaska’s Division of Elections had previously rejected Daniel J. Sullivan’s candidacy, but a state court overturned that decision, allowing him to appear on the Aug. 18 primary ballot. He received 2.47% of the primary vote and will be on the Nov. 3 general-election ballot alongside Sen. Dan Sullivan, Peltola and other candidates.
The New York Times reported that operatives aligned with Peltola’s campaign had contacted individuals named Dan Sullivan to run as “spoiler” candidates. Governor Mike Dunleavy ordered a criminal investigation after the story was published.
Election experts said ranked-choice voting, which Alaska uses, reduces the impact of a spoiler candidate because voters can rank the correct Dan Sullivan as a second choice. The DOJ lawsuit could delay certification of the election results, though its chances of success appear limited.