DOJ Sues Alaska to Block Senate Election Certification, Citing ‘Voter Confusion’
The Justice Department is suing Alaska to block certification of the state’s U.S. Senate race, alleging that the presence of a second Daniel Sullivan on the state’s ballot causes confusion.
Daniel J. Sullivan is running as an independent in the closely contested Senate race against incumbent Republican Sen. Daniel S. Sullivan and former Democrat Rep. Mary Peltola.
The lawsuit was filed Friday morning. Friday afternoon in Florida, President Donald Trump said he ordered the lawsuit.
“Well, I’m the one that said do it,” Trump told reporters. “They have two guys around named Dan Sullivan running. So the Democrats put up a guy, never, I don’t think he ever voted before. All of a sudden he decides to run for the Senate and his name is Dan Sullivan. One is Daniel S. One is Daniel J. The Daniel J is the fake and he wants to change his middle initial to Daniel S. But he said this has nothing to do with politics.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis joined, Trump and chimed in, “And Daniel J. just so happens to be funded by liberal donors. Imagine that. What a coincidence that is.”
The federal complaint tells Alaska Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher that the duplicate names could put the final results of the race in question and create “voter confusion,” Courthouse News Service reported.
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“The sole purpose of [Dan J. Sullivan’s] candidacy is to benefit the Peltola campaign by reducing the number of votes for Senator Sullivan,” the DOJ complaint says.
The Justice Department argues that the state should not certify the election outcome if it appears to be the result of voter confusion.
It calls for an order to prevent “defendants from certifying any result that may be impacted by voter confusion, as defined above, pending an investigation to determine whether votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan were meant to be cast for Senator Sullivan and any further procedures or relief this Court deems necessary and appropriate to determine what the result would have been absent Daniel J. Sullivan’s inclusion on the ballot.”
In August, Daniel J. Sullivan, a first-time politician and retired teacher, advanced to the general election ballot as one of the top four recipients of votes in the state’s ranked-choice primary.
This election and case comes after years of controversy over Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system in general elections. Ranked-choice voting allows a voter to rank their choices of candidates, and counting proceeds to another round if no candidate gets a majority of first-round votes.
State Republicans, including Beecher, named in the lawsuit in her official capacity, have portrayed Dan J. Sullivan as a spoiler candidate intending to confuse voters. The two Sullivans are differentiated by their middle initials on the ballot.
The Justice Department stresses it is not asking the court to declare a winner or automatically reassign votes. The complaint only seeks to prevent certification if votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan could have changed the outcome of the Senate race. If that is determined to have happened, the Justice Department would seek an investigation and additional judicial relief.
“Alaska’s Division of Elections determined that Mr. Daniel J. Sullivan’s candidacy was intended to mislead voters and compromise the fairness of the ballot,” a Justice Department spokesperson told the Daily Signal in a statement.
“Therefore, the Justice Department, consistent with the National Voter Registration Act enacted by Congress, is taking the necessary steps to ensure that this frivolous candidacy does not undermine the integrity of Alaska’s election or the will of its voters.”
The complaint alleges a violation of the NVRA expressly identifies protecting the integrity of the electoral process as one of its purposes. This includes preventing voter confusion and deception, the complaint argues.
The Supreme Court has recognized that states have an interest, if not a duty, in protecting elections against frivolous or fraudulent candidacies, the Justice Department noted.
The challenger, Dan J. Sullivan, has received funding from a major liberal organization. The New York Post first reported this week that the Right for Alaska super PAC spent about $1.15 million to support him. This PAC received about $990,000 from the Sixteen Thirty Fund, according to Federal Election Commission data. The Sixteen Thirty Fund was originally part of the Arabella Advisors network, known for funding liberal candidates and causes. Arabella is now known as Sunflower Services.
This story is developing and will be updated.
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