Courts & Justice · Report · File No. 261030-415
Judge orders DOJ to answer dismissal motions in Alaska Senate ballot suit by Friday afternoon
A federal judge in Anchorage is keeping the Justice Department's lawsuit on a fast track, with a ruling possible before Tuesday's election. The suit seeks to delay certification of the Alaska Senate race if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses by a margin tied to voter confusion over a second candidate named Dan Sullivan.
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A federal judge in Alaska on Friday ordered the Justice Department to respond by 1 p.m. Alaska Time Friday to new motions to dismiss its lawsuit over the state's Senate election 1. Judge Sharon Gleason issued the order hours after the department amended its complaint in U.S. District Court in Anchorage on Thursday 1.
Gleason gave state election officials, the campaign of Democratic nominee Mary Peltola and other groups until noon Saturday to reply to the department's response 1. The order leaves open the possibility that she will rule on the dismissal motions before Tuesday, which is Election Day 1. The state and Peltola's campaign have asked Gleason to dismiss the case before then 1.
What the suit asks
The department's suit seeks to delay certification of the Senate election if incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses by a margin that could be attributable to voter confusion over the presence of another candidate named Dan Sullivan on the ballot 1. The winner of Alaska's race could determine which party holds a majority in the Senate in January 1. Republicans currently have 53 seats in the 100-member chamber 1.
The case has widened beyond the courtroom. The department issued dozens of subpoenas in connection with alleged ballot-stacking against Peltola, according to reports 2. The subpoenas went to Peltola's Senate campaign offices and to the offices of Dan J. Sullivan, NBC News reported, citing a U.S. official 2. On Wednesday, The New York Times reported allegations that Peltola's campaign was directly involved in recruiting someone with the same name as her opponent 2.
From Channel GOPPeltola: Tariffs doubled Alaska air taxi's parts billMary Peltola · 142 plays · captioned, with the source named
What they said
Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, ordered an investigation into whether Peltola's campaign violated state law in the alleged scheme 2. "Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support," the governor wrote in a social media post 2. "Deliberately tricking voters into casting their ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of our elections" 2.
President Trump, in a Truth Social post on Wednesday, said the Alaska Democrat should face legal and political consequences 2. "It has just been determined that the Democrats in Alaska illegally searched for, and recruited, a man named Dan Sullivan to run against our distinguished Republican Senator, Dan Sullivan, in order to defraud, confuse, and obfuscate the Election, thereby taking votes away from the REAL Senator, Dan Sullivan," the president wrote 2.
Peltola, on Thursday, denied any knowledge of the alleged ballot-stacking scheme, saying she "knew nothing about any other candidate on the ballot except for me and the incumbent" 2. The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee also launched an investigation into the Democratic lawmaker 2.
Why it matters
That matters because the judge's schedule puts a court decision in the middle of the final weekend before a vote that could decide Senate control 1. The pattern is one of compressed deadlines: a Thursday amended complaint, a Friday afternoon response and a Saturday noon reply, all before Tuesday 1.
The Record
- The New York Times reported allegations that Peltola's campaign was directly involved in recruiting someone with the same name as her opponent 2.
- The Justice Department amended its complaint in U.S. District Court in Anchorage 1.
- Judge Sharon Gleason ordered the Justice Department to respond by 1 p.m. Alaska Time to new dismissal motions 1.
Sources
- CNBC, “Alaska Senate lawsuit: Judge orders DOJ to quickly respond to new dismissal motions” (2026-10-30). cnbc.com/2026/10/30/alaska-senate-election-doj-lawsuit-sulli
- The Hill, “DOJ issues subpoenas in Alaska Senate race: Reports” (2026-10-30). thehill.com/homenews/campaign/6183444-doj-subpoenas-peltola-
Found an error? Tell the newsroom. Corrections are noted at the top of the story.
More from the files
Justice Department issues new subpoenas in Alaska Senate probe five days before election
Federal prosecutors are seeking records from Democratic officials tied to an effort to put a second Dan Sullivan on the ballot, and the department has amended its lawsuit to block certification of the race. No one has been charged.
DOJ accuses Peltola of misleading federal court in Alaska Senate suit
The Justice Department's amended complaint says Peltola's campaign and the Democrats' Senate campaign arm misled the court. Peltola denies knowing of any scheme, and an Alaska lawyer says the new claims don't make the case stronger.
Peltola calls Alaska ballot case 'nonsense' as governor warns certification could halt
Democrat Mary Peltola denies knowing about the same-name challenger on Alaska's Senate ballot, while Gov. Mike Dunleavy says certification could be 'stopped or changed' if an investigation finds wrongdoing — four days before the midterm election.
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