Federal Judge Dismisses Trump-Ordered DOJ Alaska Lawsuit

A federal judge on Sunday rejected the Justice Department’s bid to order Alaska officials to set aside some ballots and hold up the certification of the results in its Senate election in the event of a Republican loss.

In her decision, U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason shot down an extraordinary request from the Justice Department last month to block the resolution of the election if Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R) narrowly loses. Another candidate with a nearly identical name, Dan J. Sullivan Jr., is also running, which the department argues could confuse voters and propel Democrat Mary Peltola to an unfair victory.

Department lawyers had asked Gleason to delay such an outcome so an investigation could be conducted if Sen. Sullivan loses by a margin smaller than the number of votes won by his similarly named opponent.

Democrat Mary Peltola

In her written opinion, Gleason, a nominee of President Barack Obama, noted that she did not have the authority to segregate certain ballots pending an investigation, as the Justice Department had requested. Furthermore, the judge wrote, the department did not specify how such an investigation could be carried out while respecting the voters’ secrecy choices. She said such an investigation itself would probably result in the very confusion the department said it was seeking to prevent and ultimately undermine confidence in the outcome.

“Clearly, if this Court were to order that certain ballots will be segregated and subject to a future and as yet unspecified investigation by law enforcement, it would likely result in voter ‘confusion and consequent incentive to remain away from the polls,’” she wrote.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond for comment on whether it intended to appeal the decision.

The race is unusually competitive and could determine whether Democrats take control of the Senate. Republicans consider the seat a priority, and President Donald Trump last month said he told the Justice Department to file the lawsuit over how the election would be run. In recent days, he has called for Peltola to be criminally charged and forced out of the race.