Federal Judge Rejects Trump Admin. Bid to Block Alaska Senate Election Certification
By Staff, Agencies
A federal judge on Sunday dismissed a lawsuit brought by US President Donald Trump’s administration seeking to prevent Alaska from certifying a potential Democratic victory in Tuesday’s Senate election, rejecting the federal government’s attempt to intervene in the state’s electoral process.
US District Judge Sharon Gleason ruled that the Justice Department had failed to demonstrate the legal standing necessary to pursue the case. She also determined that the administration had not presented a practical way to investigate ballots cast for a second candidate named Daniel Sullivan without violating voters’ constitutional right to a secret ballot.
The lawsuit sought to prevent Alaska from certifying a possible victory by Democratic candidate Mary Peltola if votes cast for the second Daniel Sullivan could have influenced the outcome in favor of Republican incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan.
The Justice Department announced that it would appeal the decision, describing the dismissal as procedural and maintaining that Alaska voters deserved a fair election rather than being misled in an attempt to manipulate the outcome.
In her ruling, Gleason focused on the administration’s proposal to isolate ballots cast for Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. and investigate whether those voters had actually intended to support the incumbent Republican senator.
The judge said the government had failed to explain how such an investigation could take place while maintaining ballot secrecy.
“The United States provides no workable plan as to how it proposes to segregate ballots cast for Daniel J. Sullivan on Election Day and then conduct a court-ordered unspecified ‘investigation’ of those ballots in a manner that would preserve voter secrecy,” Gleason wrote.
The Justice Department filed the lawsuit on October 22, challenging the candidacy of Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher residing in a remote Alaskan fishing village.
His name appears on the ballot alongside that of Republican incumbent Senator Daniel S. Sullivan, Democratic candidate Mary Peltola, and another contender.
The administration alleged that the retired teacher had entered the race with the intention of confusing supporters of the incumbent senator and diverting their votes. It argued that certifying a Peltola victory under such circumstances could undermine the federal government’s responsibility to protect election integrity.
The lawsuit asked the court to prevent Alaska election officials from certifying a Peltola victory if votes cast for the second Sullivan had affected the outcome. It also sought an investigation into whether those voters had intended to support the Republican incumbent.
Peltola has denied any involvement in recruiting the retired teacher to enter the race. Addressing the allegations at a rally, she stated that she was “not interested in tricking voters.”
Daniel J. Sullivan has likewise rejected claims that his candidacy was intended to confuse voters, although he told US media outlets that he would prefer Peltola to defeat the incumbent senator.
The American Civil Liberties Union [ACLU], which intervened in the case in support of Alaska, welcomed the judge’s decision and criticized the Justice Department’s attempt to intervene before ballots were counted.
The organization said the ruling had blocked an effort to “throw out Alaska’s election results before a single ballot was counted.”
“This administration keeps trying to tilt the midterms, and today [Sunday] it lost again,” the ACLU stated.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department maintained that its legal challenge was intended to safeguard election integrity and confirmed that it would appeal the ruling.
The dispute highlights growing tensions over the federal government’s authority in election administration, particularly as the United States approaches midterm elections that will determine control of Congress.
The Trump administration has adopted a more aggressive approach to federal election oversight, pressing states to provide voter-registration information and arguing that stronger safeguards are necessary to maintain public confidence in electoral processes.
Critics, including Democratic and some Republican election officials, have described these efforts as federal overreach into an area primarily administered by individual states under the US Constitution.
The Alaska lawsuit represents another development in that broader dispute, as the administration sought to use allegations of voter confusion to justify federal intervention in the certification of a Senate election.
Trump has said he personally instructed the Justice Department to file the lawsuit and has also called for Peltola to face criminal prosecution. The Justice Department has separately brought criminal cases against several of Trump’s political opponents.
The case has also drawn attention to allegations that political operatives attempted to recruit a second candidate named Dan Sullivan to divert votes from the Republican incumbent.
The New York Times reported on October 28 that individuals associated with Peltola’s campaign had worked with a Democratic operative from Ohio to find another person named Dan Sullivan willing to enter the Senate race. Reuters said it had not independently verified the report.
Peltola’s campaign has dismissed the lawsuit as without merit.
The alleged strategy is commonly described as “ballot stacking,” a political tactic involving support for lesser-known candidates in an effort to divert votes from an opponent. According to the Reuters report, both major US political parties have engaged in similar practices.
However, it remains unclear whether any laws were violated in connection with the allegations surrounding the Alaska candidacy.
Gleason’s ruling did not determine whether the recruitment effort had occurred. Instead, it addressed the Justice Department’s legal standing to bring the case and the feasibility of its proposed investigation without compromising voters’ right to a secret ballot.
