Justice Department moves to wall off Alaska ballots as criminal probe deepens in Senate race
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Federal prosecutors asked a judge to isolate Alaska ballots ranking challenger Daniel J. Sullivan, saying they want to examine possible voter confusion while a criminal investigation into the Senate race unfolds.
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a request on Friday for a court order to isolate ballots in Alaska that rank challenger Daniel J. Sullivan, saying it wants to examine whether voter confusion shaped the rankings. The move comes as federal officials confirmed a criminal investigation into the Senate race between incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democratic former Rep. Mary Peltola.
Alaska U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman told reporters the probe has been underway for several months and pointed to a recent report that Peltola’s campaign may have been involved in recruiting retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan, which he said prompted a "significant surge of law enforcement assets to Alaska."
Assistant U.S. Attorney E. Bryan Wilson wrote that the government "seeks to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purposes of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation become necessary."
Peltola denied any knowledge of the effort, stating, "I am not interested in tricking voters," and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee also rejected allegations of involvement. Dan J. Sullivan likewise denied running at the behest of Democrats.
State election officials say separating the ballots would be impractical and could violate ballot secrecy, noting that Alaska’s ranked-choice system already allows voters to rank both candidates. The ballot lists the incumbent as "Dan S. Sullivan, Republican" and the challenger as "Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., no party affiliation."
The Justice Department also submitted a list of questions for the Peltola campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee as part of a civil case that could block certification of the election if the incumbent loses. President Donald Trump said he instructed the department to file the case.
In a separate development, Trump addressed a rally in Florida, urging prosecution of Peltola and Dan J. Sullivan, and directly appealed to Attorney General Todd Blanche for a decision on the matter.
The timing of the Justice Department’s public statements is highly unusual, since officials normally avoid actions that could be seen as swaying an election in the weeks before voting.