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Justice Department Seeks Isolation of Alaska Ballots Amid Criminal Probe
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In Short: The federal criminal investigation into the recruitment of a decoy candidate named Dan Sullivan is now widening, with the Justice Department issuing subpoenas targeting Democratic officials allegedly connected to the effort.
At a news conference, U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the Justice Department's push for a court order to isolate ballots that ranked Daniel J. Sullivan, a candidate who shares a name with Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan.
Bryan Wilson, in a filing, said the government seeks to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purposes of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion.
Mary Peltola, the Democratic U.S. Senate nominee, said she is not interested in “tricking voters.” She stated, “I knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot except for me and the incumbent. That is all I have ever known about.”
President Donald Trump has called for the criminal prosecution of Mary Peltola and her campaign, dubbing the maneuver “voter fraud at the highest level.” However, Alaska’s Supreme Court has already ruled that a candidate's motives aren't grounds for disqualification.
The Justice Department has also filed a lawsuit seeking to block the certification of the Alaska Senate race if the Republican incumbent loses to Peltola.
In the wake of a New York Times report detailing an alleged Democrat-linked election scheme by the campaign team of Rep. Mary Peltola that involved the recruitment of a candidate with nearly the exact same name as an incumbent GOP senator, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced that he was ordering a probe into the matter.
The Justice Department's action in Washington follows similar efforts in other states, such as Nevada, where the DOJ initially claimed to have found 16,000 noncitizen voters but later reduced the number to 185.
The federal criminal investigation into the recruitment of a decoy candidate named Dan Sullivan is now widening, with the Justice Department issuing subpoenas targeting Democratic officials allegedly connected to the effort.
The Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Justice Department’s request for California to set aside disputed ballots received in the midterm election sent to some 20,000 people the administration contends may not be U.S. Citizens.
The Justice Department attorneys in the Alaska case said there is a “substantial risk” that Dan J. Sullivan’s ranking on ballots was the result of voter confusion, should such an investigation become necessary.
The Justice Department does not seek to stop any ballot from being cast or to stop the certification of Alaska’s election, according to a statement by Blanche on social media.
What this adds
The Justice Department's push for ballot isolation in Alaska is part of a broader investigation into alleged voter confusion tactics.
The investigation is ongoing, and the Justice Department has not yet specified the potential crimes they are looking into.
The court order to isolate ballots is a significant step in the criminal probe, but it does not prevent the certification of the election.
Background
The Justice Department has issued at least three dozen new subpoenas and document preservation requests as part of its probe into the Alaska Senate race.
The Justice Department's action in Washington follows similar efforts in other states, such as Nevada, where the DOJ initially claimed to have found 16,000 noncitizen voters but later reduced the number to 185.
What's confirmed
- Heyman holds a news conference on a criminal investigation related to an alleged scheme to confuse voters by putting a Senate candidate on the ballot with the same name as the Republican incumbent, at the James M.
- The U.S. Department of Justice is pushing for a court order to isolate certain Alaska ballots to investigate potential voter confusion, while federal officials confirmed the existence of a criminal probe over a Senate candidate who shares a name with the Republican incumbent.
- Peltola says she is not interested in “tricking voters.” A sample election ballot is displayed in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday, Oct.
- Bryan Wilson, in a filing, said the government "seeks to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purposes of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation become necessary."
- "significant surge of law enforcement assets to Alaska."
- Justice Department attorneys in the Alaska case said there is a "substantial risk" that Dan J.
- Heyman on Friday would not say what potential crimes authorities are looking into or the targets of the probe, but asked members of the public to come forward with tips that could help investigators.
- They have asked a judge to dismiss the case and said Alaska elections officials already took steps to distinguish the two Sullivans on the ballot.
- He said he had not and that "Everybody knows who the incumbent is."
- President Donald Trump has said he told the department to file the case.
- JUNEAU, Alaska — President Donald Trump called for the criminal prosecution of the Democratic candidate running for Senate in Alaska on Wednesday after revelations that her campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting a candidate with the same name as Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan.
- Sullivan to investigate potential voter “confusion” with the senator.
What's still developing
- Read more Dardanelle Middle School honor roll A sample election ballot is displayed in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday, Oct.
- October 26, 2026 by James Brooks, Alaska Beacon An official with the Anchorage Police Department said Monday that there is no evidence that Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mary Peltola was deliberately targeted in a weekend car accident that injured her and members of her family.
- ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - With Alaska’s midterm election just days away, U.S. Senate candidate Mary Peltola is under a national microscope as a federal criminal probe into allegations that a former staff member made were revealed this week.
- “Clearly, folks are gone, they’re gone for a good reason,” she said.
- Sources told ABC News that DOJ prosecutors are probing "whether the behind-the-scenes maneuvering to include Dan J. Sullivan's name on the ballot could violate potential federal conspiracy statutes."
- Asked what federal crimes could be implicated by an alleged recruitment scheme, the Justice Department official identified two civil rights statutes, 18 U.S.C.
- The Justice Department has issued at least three dozen new subpoenas and document preservation requests as part of its probe into the Alaska Senate race, a U.S. official confirmed to NBC News on Thursday.
- Millions of Americans have already cast their ballots ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, with early voting figures beginning to reveal trends that could influence the battle for control of the US House of Representatives and Senate.