Judge set to rule on Alaska Senate lawsuit as spoiler claims divide voters

A federal judge in Anchorage is expected to rule as soon as Saturday on motions to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the Department of Justice. The suit seeks to block the certification of the upcoming U.S. Senate election in Alaska if incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan loses by a narrow margin. The legal action was strengthened by a New York Times report alleging that Democratic operatives recruited a spoiler candidate to run against Sullivan.

The state division of elections is one of the parties asking the judge to toss the case. Governor Mike Dunleavy has ordered a separate state agency to investigate whether the recruitment operation described in the report violated any laws. Several legal experts interviewed in Alaska said they were unaware of any legal violations based on the reporting. Under state law, a candidate’s motives do not affect eligibility. One law professor described the DOJ case as a press release dressed up as a lawsuit and said he did not expect it to have legal legs.

The Justice Department has also launched a parallel criminal investigation but has not specified what potential crimes it is examining. The race is one of the tightest on the Senate map and could determine control of the chamber next year. President Trump flew to Alaska recently to campaign for Sullivan in the final days before the election.

Voter reactions are mixed. Many supporters of Democratic challenger Mary Peltola said the recruitment tactic is ugly politics but said they are still voting for her. Some described the Republican response as hypocritical. Amber McClelland, a Democrat in Anchorage, said recruiting a candidate just to draw votes away from an opponent should not be a thing. She added that Republicans have done everything possible to win in the past, including cheat.

Ruskin noted that Republicans have promoted spoilers in Alaska before. A Republican-aligned group spent significant money this year to try to get a Green Party candidate from Arizona on the ballot, but he did not survive the state’s top four primary. Two years ago, the Republican Party went to court to defend the right of Eric Hafner, a federal prison inmate in New York, to run against Peltola for U.S. House. This year, a Republican-affiliated super PAC tried to get Hafner’s mother on the Senate ballot as a Democratic spoiler, but she also lost in the primary.

A Republican National Committee spokesman argued that the current situation is unique because the alleged spoiler shares the same name as Senator Sullivan. He said the goal was to confuse voters. Peltola addressed the allegations in a speech at a bar in Juneau, the state capital, just last night. She stated she knew nothing about other candidates on the ballot except for herself and the incumbent. She said she is not interested in tricking voters.

Peltola is still campaigning this weekend and may address the story again. Senator Sullivan said on Fox News that Peltola is lying and cheating. The state’s top four primary system means all candidates compete in a single primary regardless of party affiliation, with the top four advancing to the general election.