A federal judge on Monday night put the Department of Justice's lawsuit over Alaska's Senate election on a fast track. The suit seeks to block quick certification of the race if Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan loses because of voter confusion linked to another candidate who has the same name.
Judge Sharon Gleason's order raises the possibility that she could decide, before Election Day on Nov. 3, whether to dismiss the case. Dismissal has been requested by the campaign of Democratic nominee Mary Peltola. The winner of the contest could determine which party controls the Senate starting in January.
Gleason granted a motion from Peltola's campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to expedite the case in U.S. District Court in Alaska. She told the DOJ to respond by 5 p.m. Alaska Time on Tuesday to requests to intervene filed by the Peltola campaign, the DSCC, the League of Women Voters and Common Cause. The judge said she plans to rule on those requests by late Wednesday afternoon. If she allows the groups in, the DOJ must be ready to answer the motion to dismiss by 5 p.m. Thursday.
Soon after the order, Alaska election officials made their first filing in the case. They asked the judge to throw out the suit "immediately, with prejudice, because the complaint has no legal basis," and requested a decision by Nov. 2. The state said its Division of Elections "has taken significant steps to distinguish" between the two Sullivans on the ballot, and argued that the United States lacks authority to intervene in state elections at all. Lawyers for the officials wrote that the suit casts a cloud over the election that the court should not let linger.
The DOJ filed the lawsuit Thursday, and President Donald Trump said later that day that he had ordered it. It asks a judge to bar Alaska from certifying results if Sullivan loses by a margin that could be due to voters mistakenly choosing Daniel J. Sullivan. In that event, the department wants an investigation into whether enough voters were confused to swing the outcome to another candidate, presumably former Rep. Peltola. The DOJ claims Daniel J. Sullivan's "sole purpose" in running is to help Peltola by drawing votes from the senator.
Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote on X on Sunday that the department does not seek to stop any ballot from being cast or to stop certification. He said the suit aims to ensure ballots are preserved so that only Alaska's governing officials have the information needed to judge whether voters were confused or misled. He added that DOJ attorneys wrote the suit and that the department did not coordinate with any campaign or candidate. The department has not explained how an investigation before certification could establish that a voter was confused. On the ballot, Sen. Sullivan appears as Dan S. Sullivan with notations that he is an incumbent and a Republican, while Daniel J. Sullivan's name has no such words beside it.
Peltola's campaign and the DSCC said in a filing that they are "seriously concerned" Trump and Blanche will use the case to "lay the groundwork for unlawful efforts to challenge a potential Peltola victory." They also said the issues were resolved months ago by the Alaska Supreme Court. Peltola told MS NOW on Friday that the suit "is exactly the kind of corruption that Alaskans are sick and tired of."
Daniel J. Sullivan told the Alaska Beacon the experience has become "overwhelming and intimidating." He called the lawsuit "a gross misuse of the Justice Department" and said the primary showed "little if any confusion." He added that he has faith in voters' ability to make an informed decision.
Separately, Peltola's campaign said she and her family sustained minor injuries Saturday night when a vehicle carrying them to the Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Banquet was struck by another driver. Her events in Fairbanks and Bethel on Sunday and Monday were postponed and will be rescheduled.
