Politics

Sullivan Promises to Accept Alaska Senate Result as Judge Dismisses DOJ Lawsuit

By Al Jazeera Staff and AP

Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan has pledged to accept the outcome of Alaska’s U.S. Senate race, even as the Trump administration seeks to challenge the state’s certification if he loses. "I’m going to accept the election results," Sullivan told CNN on Sunday, two days before the November 3 midterm election that will decide control of Congress. He said he was confident of winning and accused his Democratic opponent, Mary Peltola, of cheating. "My opponent and [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer and his aides are showing complete disrespect for Alaskans…they had to cheat," he said.

A New York Times report on Wednesday alleged that members of Peltola’s campaign helped recruit a retired teacher named Dan J. Sullivan Jr. to run as a spoiler candidate and draw votes away from Senator Sullivan. The report appears to have prompted the Trump administration’s renewed legal push to bar Alaska from certifying its election results if Sullivan loses.

On Sunday, U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason dismissed the Department of Justice lawsuit, calling it "infeasible" because many voters had already cast ballots and the ballots had been commingled to the point that individual voter identities could not be determined. She noted that the United States had provided no workable plan for segregating ballots cast for Daniel J. Sullivan on Election Day and conducting a court‑ordered investigation that would preserve voter secrecy. The second Sullivan is listed on the ballot as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., while the senator is listed as Dan S. Sullivan and marked as a Republican incumbent.

Peltola has insisted she had nothing to do with recruiting the other Sullivan and has called the matter a "distraction" from the main issues facing Alaskans, such as high prices driven by the U.S.–Israel war with Iran. Her campaign has also denied involvement. When asked at a rally on Friday whether someone on her campaign could have recruited the other Sullivan, she replied, "I have no idea. I honestly have no idea."

Sullivan doubted Peltola’s claims. "There is no way this went on for a year that they weren’t informing her," he told the CNN program State of the Union. "She got caught lying, and she’s still lying to the Alaskan people, the media, to all of us."

Alaska’s Senate race is one of seven key toss‑ups that could determine whether Republicans keep their majority in the U.S. Senate. Both candidates have spent the final days campaigning across Alaska’s vast landscape. On Saturday night, Senator Sullivan handed out candy at a "trunk‑or‑treat" event at a recreation centre north of Anchorage, joking that his costume was "the real Dan Sullivan."