Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mary Peltola asked a federal judge late Sunday to dismiss a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit that seeks to block Alaska from certifying its election results if the Republican incumbent loses narrowly. Following the motion, U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason on Monday fast-tracked the case, ordering the federal government to respond by Thursday to the dismissal request if she grants pending motions to intervene.
The legal dispute centers on the presence of two candidates with similar names on the Alaska ballot: incumbent Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan and another candidate, Daniel J. Sullivan. The Justice Department, in a lawsuit filed last week, alleged that the second Sullivan entered the race to mislead voters and benefit Peltola. President Donald Trump stated on Thursday that he ordered the filing of the lawsuit.
Lawyers for Peltola and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee argued in court filings that the lawsuit is "wholly baseless" and represents an unlawful federal intervention into state election administration. They noted that the Alaska Supreme Court already ruled in June that Daniel J. Sullivan could appear on the ballot. U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday that the litigation is intended to ensure officials can determine if voter confusion occurred, rather than to take over the election.
The potential impact involves Alaskans who have already begun casting ballots for the November 3 midterm elections. While the DOJ has not specified how it would determine voter confusion after ballots are cast, the ballot currently distinguishes the candidates by listing the incumbent as "Dan S. Sullivan" with the labels "Incumbent" and "Republican," while the other is listed as "Daniel J. Sullivan" with no additional description. Election law experts cited in the reports stated that the lawsuit has no merit and seeks relief not allowed under federal law.
The concrete change for Alaskans would be a delay in knowing their official representative if the certification is blocked for an investigation. Judge Gleason set a deadline for the DOJ to respond to motions to intervene by Tuesday at 5 p.m. Alaska Time, with a planned ruling on those motions by Wednesday afternoon. If the intervention is granted, the DOJ must respond to the motion to dismiss by 5 p.m. Thursday, October 29.