Justice Department Sues to Block Alaska Senate Certification Unless Sen. Dan Sullivan Wins

The Justice Department has sued Alaska election officials in federal court, seeking to block certification of the state's U.S. Senate race unless Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan wins, according to NBC News and the Alaska Beacon. The department argues that a second candidate on the ballot, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., could mislead the senator's supporters.

The suit was filed late Thursday, Oct. 22, against the Alaska Division of Elections, the Alaska Beacon reported. President Donald Trump told reporters Friday that he directed it, and he defended the move again Saturday after casting his own ballot in Florida, according to the Associated Press.

What the Alaska Senate Lawsuit Asks For

"For example, some supporters of Senator Sullivan likely will inadvertently vote for Daniel J. Sullivan," the filing says, according to NBC News. "To guard against this danger, it is vital that Defendants not certify any election result that may be impacted by voter confusion."

The department asks the court to block certification if Sen. Sullivan does not win and if, had all votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan gone to the senator instead, Sen. Sullivan would have won under Alaska's ranked choice process, NBC News reported. The complaint calls the second Sullivan's candidacy "frivolous" and says it was meant to confuse voters and help Democratic nominee Mary Peltola, according to the Alaska Beacon. The filing does not name him as a defendant.

The filing was signed by Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, who said the action was brought "to protect the integrity of the 2026 Senate election in Alaska," according to NBC News. A Justice Department spokesperson told NBC News the department is acting "consistent with the National Voter Registration Act" to ensure "this frivolous candidacy does not undermine the integrity of Alaska's election." The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason, the Alaska Beacon reported.

Trump Says He Ordered the Suit

"I'm the one that said do it," Trump told reporters Friday, calling Sullivan Jr.'s candidacy "a disgrace," according to NBC News. Trump has repeatedly claimed the second Sullivan is a spoiler put on the ballot by Democrats; that is his claim and has not been established. Sullivan Jr., a former teacher from Petersburg, told the AP in June that his candidacy is no sham and that he is not working with anyone, and a Peltola spokesperson has said her campaign has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign, NBC News reported.

Sullivan Jr. finished third in the August primary with 2.5% of the vote. Peltola received 49.5% and Sen. Sullivan 41.4%, according to NBC News. State officials first removed Sullivan Jr. from the ballot in June, but Alaska courts ruled he could stay on it. The November ballot lists the incumbent as "Dan S. Sullivan" with "registered Republican" and "incumbent" beside his name, NBC News reported.

Critics and Alaska Officials Respond

Alaska's Division of Elections said it is reviewing the complaint and is "focused on running the ongoing election," according to NBC News. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski said on X that "the Department of Justice should never have filed this lawsuit," and Peltola called the move "the corruption AK is fed up with."

Notre Dame Law School election law professor Derek Muller told the Alaska Beacon he does not expect the case to move before Election Day, if at all, noting that under ranked choice voting a voter can rank both Sullivans. Election Day is Nov. 3.

Image: The Alaska State Capitol in Juneau (file photo), by James Brooks, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.

Yossi Schmidt, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Digital Free Press

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Sources: NBC News, "Trump administration sues to block Alaska Senate certification if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses in November" (Oct. 23, 2026): https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/trump-justice-department-lawsuit-alaska-senate-rcna605229 ; Alaska Beacon, "Trump administration sues to block Alaska's US Senate election result if Peltola wins" (Oct. 23, 2026): https://alaskabeacon.com/2026/10/23/trump-administration-sues-to-block-alaskas-us-senate-election-result-if-peltola-wins/ ; Associated Press via PBS News, "Trump casts his midterm ballot early in Florida" (Oct. 24, 2026): https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-casts-his-midterm-ballot-early-in-florida