Justice Department wants Alaska Senate ballots set aside; the state calls it “impossible”
Two days before the vote, a federal judge must decide whether to dismiss a suit that could delay certifying a race that may decide control of the Senate.
Alaska’s Republican-run state government on Saturday urged U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason to dismiss a Justice Department lawsuit, filed at President Trump’s direction, that seeks to block certification if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses. On Friday the department asked the court to separate every ballot ranking a second candidate, retired teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. The state called that request “both disturbing and impossible,” saying it could not be done without violating voter privacy.
The Justice Department sued on Oct. 23 to delay certification if Sen. Sullivan loses by a margin that could reflect voter confusion, citing the National Voter Registration Act; it later added a Supremacy Clause claim.
Reported · CNBC, from the court filingOn Friday, the department asked the court to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking the second Sullivan, and the U.S. attorney said a criminal investigation is under way.
Reported · CNBC, APThe state says the ballot already distinguishes the two: the senator is listed as the Republican incumbent, the other as “Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.”
Reported · Alaska filing, quoted by APPeltola’s campaign helped recruit the second Sullivan onto the ballot.
Disputed · New York Times report; Peltola and the DSCC deny it
Confirmed = primary document · Reported = news reports or quoted statements · Suspected = one analyst or unnamed insiders · Disputed = reported and denied
If the suit survives: the Sullivan campaign gains time after a loss. If it is dismissed: state election officials keep control of counting and certification.
Alaska voters face uncertainty over when, or whether, a result is certified; Mary Peltola’s campaign faces a federal criminal inquiry days before the vote.
The number is not the whole story.
The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 governs how states register voters and maintain voter rolls. Certification is the separate legal step in which a state confirms the official count.
The department reads the law’s statement of purpose, which mentions protecting the “integrity of the electoral process,” as authority over certification. Alaska and Peltola’s campaign say the act governs registration only and gives the department no power over counting.
If a preamble can justify delaying certification, the same theory could be used in any close federal race. That is why election-law experts are watching a single-state case so closely.
Verified baseline: 52 U.S.C. 20501, findings and purposes ↗
What came before?
The Alaska Supreme Court ruled this summer that the second Dan Sullivan met every legal requirement to stay on the ballot. The Justice Department filed its suit on Oct. 23, and after a New York Times report on Oct. 28 said Peltola allies helped recruit him, the U.S. attorney accelerated a criminal investigation.
What is reported?
The department asked on Friday that all ballots ranking the second Sullivan be set aside. Alaska, Peltola’s campaign and the ACLU all asked the judge on Saturday to dismiss the case, an unusual alignment of a Republican state government with Democrats and civil-liberties lawyers.
What remains open?
Judge Gleason has left open a ruling before Tuesday. Alaska uses ranked-choice voting, so if no one passes 50% in the first count, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those ballots are redistributed, a process that takes days.
Check the judge’s ruling and the first-round count on Nov. 3.
DOCUMENTED BACKGROUND / EARLIER RECORD · SOURCE LINKS3 dated sources · expand ↓
- The Justice Department filed suit to delay certification if Sen. Sullivan loses by a margin that might reflect voter confusion. CNBC ↗
- The department amended its complaint, asked to segregate ballots, and the U.S. attorney confirmed a criminal investigation. CNBC ↗
- Alaska’s attorney general asked the court to dismiss the suit with prejudice, calling the ballot request impossible without violating privacy. AP via PBS News ↗
These dated sources establish the background. They do not prove that a particular earlier decision caused the latest development.
What we'll check next: Check the judge’s ruling and the first-round count on Nov. 3.
Why it matters
Republicans hold 53 of 100 Senate seats, and the Alaska winner could decide which party controls the chamber from January. The case tests whether federal prosecutors can delay a state’s certification by claiming voters were confused by two candidates with the same name.
What remains unresolved
Will Judge Gleason dismiss the case before Tuesday, and if she does not, can a certification be held up by a claim of voter confusion?
Sources are labeled by tier: Primary (documents and official data), Reporting (news organizations), Analysis (research and commentary). Attribution belongs to each named publisher.
Primary U.S. Code — National Voter Registration Act, 52 U.S.C. 20501 ↗Reporting Associated Press via PBS News — Alaska calls ballot demand “meritless” ↗Reporting CNBC — DOJ asks to segregate ballots ↗