ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday sought a court order to isolate certain Alaska ballots for investigation. potential voter confusionas federal officials confirmed criminal investigation into Senate candidate who shares a name with the outgoing Republican president.
The dueling developments came days before Tuesday’s general election, in a race led by two-term Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and former Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. This race is one of a handful nationwide expected to determine control of the Senate.
Alaska U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman told reporters in Anchorage that the investigation had been underway for several months, but recent revelations from the New York Times that Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruitment Dan J. Sullivan, retired teacher resulted in a “significant increase in law enforcement resources in Alaska.”
Furthermore, the Ministry of Justice – within the framework of a trial he filed last week — asked a judge to order state elections officials to isolate ballots ranking Dan J. Sullivan to investigate possible voter “confusion” with the senator.
Assistant Alaska Attorney E. Bryan Wilson said in a filing that the government “seeks to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purpose of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation be necessary.”
The Justice Department also filed with the court a list of proposed questions it seeks to compel Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to answer as part of the civil case seeking to block certification of the Senate race if the outgoing president loses. President Donald Trump said he had asked the department to file a complaint.
State election officials made efforts to distinguish the two Sullivans on the ballot
Peltola refused Thursday that she knew something about the effort to put Dan J. Sullivan on the ballot: “I’m not interested in misleading voters,” she said.
Democrats, including the DSCC, have repeatedly denied involvement in any election fraud. Dan J. Sullivan long denied he was running at the request of Democrats.
Alaska’s ballot segregation request comes after the 9th U.S. Court of Appeals. rejected the request of the Ministry of Justice for California to void disputed ballots received during the midterm elections and sent to some 20,000 people who the administration says may not be U.S. citizens. California officials argued that the list was highly unreliable and most likely included many people who are U.S. citizens.
Justice Department lawyers handling the Alaska case said there is a “substantial risk” that Dan J. Sullivan’s candidacy will “mislead voters and ultimately result in an election process lacking integrity.”
“To guard against this danger, the United States seeks an order directing Defendants to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purpose of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation be necessary,” the filing states. He is asking for a decision by Monday.
In response, lawyers for the state questioned how segregation would be possible, writing that voters’ ballots are mixed in the ballot box on Election Day and that election workers could not separate the ballots classifying Dan J. Sullivan without violating vote secrecy protections. Separate or separate ballots would not reveal why voters voted for Dan J. Sullivan, they said.
They asked a judge to dismiss the case and said Alaska elections officials had already taken steps to distinguish the two Sullivans on the ballot. The senator is listed as Dan S. Sullivan, a Republican and incumbent, while the challenger is listed as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., with no party affiliation. This is also how they appeared in the August open primary voting.
State lawyers also argued that Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system further addresses concerns about potential confusion by allowing voters to rank the two Sullivans.
The timing of Justice Department announcements is unusual
Heyman did not specify Friday what potential crimes authorities are investigating or the targets of the investigation, but asked members of the public to offer tips that could help investigators.
It is highly unusual for Justice Department officials to publicly discuss a criminal investigation or even confirm its existence. The timing of the press conference is particularly notable given the Justice Department’s long-standing practice of avoiding taking public actions in the weeks leading up to an election that could be perceived as an attempt to influence a political outcome.
Trump, at a rally Friday night in Florida, said Peltola and Dan J. Sullivan should be prosecuted. He noted that U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche was in attendance and said, “He’s going to make his own decision.” »
Trump, then speaking directly to Blanche, said of decisions in the case, “Todd, please make yours” and observed Blanche’s response.
Trump added: “OK, he said ‘yes.’ »
Peltola, at a campaign rally in Anchorage Friday night, said she was “very deeply offended by these accusations that she was involved in someone else’s candidacy.” She said she didn’t need any help to win the race aside from voter support.
Federal prosecutors this week issued dozens of grand jury subpoenas and records preservation requests, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
Alaska’s Republican governor, Mike Dunleavy, said following the New York Times report that he had ordered an investigation to determine whether violations had occurred.
Meanwhile, the Alaska Democratic Party sued state elections officials, alleging that in-person absentee voting sites did not open as advertised in some rural communities. The Division of Elections director, in a letter dated Monday, said the agency has signed agreements with local or tribal offices to operate the sites and that most of the 18 highlighted sites have opened. A message seeking comment from the State Department of Law was not immediately returned.
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Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Bohrer reported from Juneau, Alaska. AP reporter Will Weissert contributed from Washington.
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