DOJ sues to pause Alaska Senate certification over same-name ballot issue

The Department of Justice has asked a federal court to pause the certification of the Alaska U.S. Senate race.

The move comes with three days remaining until Election Day. The department argues voters may have been confused by two candidates with identical names on the ballot. The dispute centers on Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan and a Democratic recruit also named Dan Sullivan. The Justice Department wants a court to hold the certification of a possible Democratic win until it resolves the issue.

President Donald Trump directed the suit late last week. He followed the filing by calling for the prosecution of Democratic candidate Mary Peltola. The request stems from a report that her campaign helped recruit the second Dan Sullivan to draw votes from the incumbent. Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy has ordered an investigation into the matter.

Legal scholars note this is the first time since the Civil Rights era that the federal government has sued to halt election certification. The Constitution assigns that duty to the states. Trump has campaigned on the claim that Alaskan ranked choice voting is a scam. He has also promised a $1 million bounty for proof of voter fraud. Attorney General Todd Blanche told reporters on Sunday that the administration is not trying to take over a state election. He said the department had no choice but to act.

Republican allies in Alaska have reacted with mixed feelings. Senator Lisa Murkowski said the administration should never have filed the suit. The state’s Republican-controlled government filed court papers to dismiss the case. Senator Dan Sullivan did not say whether he supported the lawsuit.

The administration has faced other legal hurdles this month. The Justice Department sued California and Washington to block the counting of ballots. A federal judge rejected the California demand on Wednesday. The administration also seized 2020 election records from Fulton County, Georgia, and launched a broad investigation into that vote.

Early voting has proceeded without major disruption. About 35 million people have cast ballots so far. Theresa Lee, a senior attorney with the ACLU, said her group has been preparing for this scenario for a year and a half. Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor, called the Alaska lawsuit’s legal argument one of the worst he has seen. He suggested the administration’s actions look more impulsive than strategic.

Trump told reporters this week he would accept the results if they are honest elections. That mirrors his comments after the 2016 Iowa caucuses. Matt Dallek, a political historian at George Washington University, expects courts to throw out most of the administration’s charges. He believes the lawsuits serve to intensify the signal to Trump’s supporters that the elections are rigged. Pat McCrory, a former North Carolina governor and member of Right Count, said the Constitution remains a strong barrier against executive overreach.