A judge dismisses Trump's lawsuit seeking to intervene in the Alaska Senate election
The Trump administration sought to set aside and preserve ballots on which voters marked a candidate named Dan J. Sullivan, who shares his name with the Republican senator seeking reelection. The judge ruled that the measure would violate Alaskans' right to a secret ballot.
An Alaska federal judge on Sunday dismissed the lawsuit filed by the Trump administration to separate and preserve certain ballots in the upcoming state Senate election, in which Republican Dan Sullivan is facing off against Democrat Mary Peltola.
The controversy arose after The New York Times reported that Peltola's campaign and other Democrats had recruited a candidate named Dan J. Sullivan to run for the seat, sharing the same name as the incumbent Republican senator. Both Peltola and her team have repeatedly denied these allegations.
Fearing that voters might confuse the two candidates, the Trump administration requested that ballots showing a vote for Dan J. Sullivan be identified and set aside separately. The government's argument was that, if the Republican senator lost, it might be because some voters had mistakenly voted for the other candidate.
However, Federal Judge Sharon Gleason expressed concern about citizens' right to a secret ballot and questioned how the requested measure could address the administration's arguments without compromising the secrecy of the ballot.
"The absence of any explanation from the United States as to how its requested relief could redress its alleged injury while simultaneously maintaining the secrecy of the ballot is telling," Gleason wrote in his ruling, obtained by NBC.
In another section, the judge was more emphatic in pointing out that separating the ballots of those who voted for Daniel J. Sullivan so that those voters could be investigated later by the authorities was not a measure the court could order.
"Requiring the segregation of ballots cast by voters for Daniel J. Sullivan so that these voters can be further investigated by law enforcement is not a remedy that this Court can or should order as it clearly violate Alaskans’ right to a secret ballot," he stated.
The lawsuit also sought to prevent the certification of the Senate election results in the event that Dan Sullivan lost. On Saturday, Alaska's Republican-controlled state government had asked the federal judge to block that initiative.
The Department of Justice will appeal the decision
"The court dismissed the case on procedural grounds but did not dispute the argument of the United States that Daniel J. Sullivan (a/k/a Decoy Dan) entered the race as a frivolous candidate to confuse voters. DOJ plans to file a notice of appeal. Alaskan voters deserve a fair election, not to be misled in an attempt to rig outcomes," the spokesperson said.
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