Justice Dept Sues Over Alaska Ballot
Federal investigators are probing whether the Peltola campaign planted a decoy candidate to confuse voters in the Senate race.
By Nour Haddad ·
The Trump administration has sued to block the certification of the Alaska Senate race, a move that targets a decades-old practice of running decoy candidates to confuse voters. The Justice Department filed the lawsuit last week, arguing that officials should not finalize the results until they determine if voters were misled by a Republican incumbent and a Democrat with the same name.
The race features Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, former House member Mary Peltola, and two challengers who have campaigned minimally. One of those challengers is Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired school teacher. Alaska Republicans have long suspected the second Sullivan was placed on the ballot by the Peltola camp to split the vote.
The controversy escalated after a report by The New York Times this week. The article cited internal texts showing the Peltola campaign recruited the second Sullivan. In response, President Donald Trump called for the Democrat to be prosecuted. The Justice Department issued multiple subpoenas as part of a criminal investigation.
Peltola has denied any involvement in the scheme. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee also stated that the candidate had no role in the strategy. The Peltola campaign announced her Senate run in January 2026. The Times report detailed efforts starting in 2025 to recruit another Dan Sullivan to the ballot.
The use of such candidates is not new to American politics. In 1946, supporters of John F. Kennedy recruited a 27-year-old janitor named Joe Russo to run against a four-term Boston city councilman with the same name. The tactic is intended to draw votes away from the main opponent.
Critics argue the Justice Department is using its investigative power for political ends. Justin Levitt, a law professor at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, said the behavior is common in campaigns. He noted that there is no disclosed behavior that violates federal law. Levitt served as a Justice official during the Biden administration.
The Alaska system is unique in its vulnerability. Jason Torchinsky, a veteran campaign finance attorney, pointed to the state's ranked-choice voting. Anyone who pays a $100 filing fee can appear on the primary ballot. The top four finishers advance to the general election, where voters rank three of them. This structure allows third-party candidates to influence the outcome more than in traditional systems.
The Justice Department defended its timing in a statement on Wednesday. It said the agency is following the facts and the law, not a political timetable. David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, expects a judge to reject the lawsuit. He described the suit as frivolous if Sen. Sullivan does not win the seat.
