Trump Administration Challenges Alaska Senate Race Results
The Trump administration has labeled a narrow win for the Democratic candidate in Alaska’s Senate race as a “tainted victory,” citing the presence of a candidate with a similar name as the incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan.
The Justice Department made this assertion on Tuesday through a lawsuit initiated last week. The suit aims to block the certification of the election results if Senator Sullivan loses to Democratic challenger Mary Peltola by a margin smaller than the votes cast for retired teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.
The filing stated, “Many polls indicate that the race between Senator Sullivan and Peltola will be within one or two percentage points, and Mr. Sullivan received 2.5% of the vote in the primary election.”
The department argues that a majority of Alaskans who intend to vote for Senator Sullivan could inadvertently result in a win for Peltola because of the votes drawn by Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.
The Justice Department has requested the court to prevent Peltola’s campaign and the League of Women Voters of Alaska from intervening in the case. If allowed by the judge, both parties plan to move to dismiss the case.
The Justice Department stated, “Beyond positing hypothetical future motives, Proposed Intervenors fail to even allege how they would be litigating this case differently than Defendants.”
The lawsuit names the state of Alaska and election officials as defendants. It asserts that allowing intervention would result in repetitious motions laden with intense and incorrect rhetoric.
This filing is part of a rapid series of court proceedings. Judge Sharon L. Gleason set an emergency schedule, requiring the government to respond by 5 p.m. Tuesday. Peltola’s campaign and voting rights groups have until noon on Wednesday to submit their replies. The judge plans to rule on the motions to dismiss by 5 p.m. Thursday.
On the ballot, the current senator is listed as the “incumbent” under “Dan Sullivan,” affiliated with the Republican party. His namesake, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., appears without any party affiliation.
This story is ongoing; more updates will follow.