ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The U.S. Justice Department has gone to federal court in Alaska asking a judge to keep the state from certifying its Nov. 3 U.S. Senate result if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan comes up short, arguing that a second candidate with nearly the same name could pull votes away from him.
The complaint, filed Thursday, centers on Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., who is also on the ballot. Federal lawyers say some backers of the senator, whose full name is Daniel S. Sullivan, could mark the wrong Sullivan by mistake or rank the candidates in a way that lets their votes slide to Democratic nominee Mary Peltola once the lesser-known Sullivan is eliminated under the state ranked-choice count.
The department wants certification paused only if two things happen: the senator loses, and the votes cast for the other Sullivan would have been enough to change the outcome. The suit asks for an investigation into whether those votes were meant for the incumbent, though it does not explain how anyone could learn the intent behind a secret ballot. Named as defendants are the state, elections division director Carol Beecher, the state election boards and the Ballot Counting Review Board.
President Donald Trump told reporters Friday in Fort Myers, Fla., that he directed the department to file the case. A day earlier, Attorney General Todd Blanche had said the department does not intend to improperly interfere in any state certification process.
Peltola called the suit corrupt and accused the senator of leaning on allies in Washington to stay in office. The Alaska Division of Elections said it is reviewing the complaint while it keeps running the election and helping voters avoid confusion through its official pamphlet and poll workers. Elections in the United States are run and certified by state and local officials, and federal law gives the Justice Department a narrow role centered on civil rights and prosecuting election crimes.
The other Sullivan was removed from the ballot in June after state officials questioned whether his candidacy was in good faith, but Alaska courts let him back on. In the August all-party primary, Peltola drew 49.5% of the vote, the senator 41.4% and the second Sullivan 2.5%. Republicans hold a slim Senate majority, and the Alaska seat is seen as one of the closest races in the country.
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