A high-stakes U.S. Senate race in Alaska has escalated into a legal and political battle days before the Nov. 3 election, after the Justice Department moved to challenge certification if incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan is defeated by Democratic challenger Mary Peltola.
The controversy centers on a retired rural teacher named Daniel J. Sullivan, who qualified for the general election ballot alongside the two-term incumbent. Republicans and federal prosecutors allege the second candidate was recruited to mislead voters, while Peltola and national Democrats have denied any coordination in placing him on the ballot.
Federal Lawsuit and Criminal Inquiry
The Justice Department filed an amended complaint Thursday seeking to block Alaska from certifying the election if the incumbent loses narrowly, according to reports. The federal action included roughly 40 subpoenas and document preservation demands, Reuters reported. Justice Department attorneys argued that operatives orchestrated a sham campaign to confuse the electorate and steer votes away from the incumbent senator.
Attorney General Todd Blanche defended the action during an appearance on “Face the Nation,” stating that the department is not demanding an outright refusal to certify. Instead, Blanche said federal officials are seeking guardrails in case post-election analysis shows that voter confusion altered the outcome rather than the genuine will of voters.
The legal push follows a report published Wednesday by The New York Times, which cited text messages and interviews showing that an operative affiliated with Peltola’s campaign and national Democratic committees helped recruit Daniel J. Sullivan. In response, Alaska Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy directed the state Department of Public Safety to investigate whether the recruitment broke state laws.
“Today’s New York Times reporting reveals disturbing new evidence of an organized effort to manipulate Alaska’s elections,” Dunleavy wrote on social media.
Candidates Clash on the Campaign Trail
Peltola vigorously pushed back against the allegations during a campaign appearance Thursday in Juneau, maintaining that she had no knowledge of any spoiler strategy.
“I knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot except for me and the incumbent,” Peltola said. “That is all I have ever known about. I am not interested in tricking voters.”
Sen. Sullivan rejected her statement, telling Fox News that the challenger was continuing to conceal the truth. Sullivan labeled the recruitment a deliberate effort to rig the vote by tricking voters into wasting their ballots.
Fellow Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski criticized the federal intervention, saying the state had already properly separated the candidates on the ballot. However, Murkowski also reproached the Peltola campaign following the news reports, demanding complete honesty regarding the alleged recruitment effort.
Ranked-Choice System Faces Scrutiny
Alaska uses a top-four nonpartisan primary paired with ranked-choice voting in the general election, a process voters approved in 2020. In the August primary, Peltola finished first with 49.5 percent, Sen. Sullivan followed with 41.4 percent, and Daniel J. Sullivan secured third place with 2.5 percent, advancing alongside Republican Gerald Heikes.
State election officials previously attempted to bar Daniel J. Sullivan in June after finding his filing appeared intended to mislead voters. However, state courts, including the Alaska Supreme Court, ruled that state law did not empower election directors to evaluate candidate motives. To limit confusion, election authorities listed the incumbent as “Sullivan, Dan S. (Registered Republican) Incumbent” and the challenger as “Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.” with no party label.
Election law specialists, including CBS News contributor David Becker, expressed skepticism about the federal government’s legal standing, emphasizing that the U.S. Constitution assigns election administration to the states. Roughly 58,000 Alaskans, representing nearly one in 10 registered voters, had already cast their ballots before the latest reports emerged, leaving the final impact on the race uncertain until ballots are tallied next week.
