Feds ‘intensely’ probing alleged Alaska ballot scheme, US attorney confirms

Alaska’s top federal prosecutor, Michael Heyman, confirmed on 30 October that authorities were investigating allegations that Democratic operatives tried to recruit a Senate candidate with the same name as Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan to confuse voters. Heyman said the inquiry had been under way for months but had intensified after new reporting about possible involvement by Mary Peltola’s campaign. He did not identify potential offences or targets. Peltola said she knew nothing about an effort to recruit another candidate, while the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the candidate, retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan, also denied involvement in a campaign trick.

The announcement came days before the election between Sullivan and Peltola, in a race that could affect control of the Senate. In a separate civil case, the Justice Department asked a court to set aside ballots ranking Dan J. Sullivan so it could examine possible voter confusion. Alaska officials said the ballot identified the senator as the Republican incumbent and listed the other candidate under his fuller name, without a party affiliation. They argued that separating ballots would raise secrecy concerns and that ranked-choice voting lets people rank both men. The allegations remained under investigation when Heyman spoke; the existence of the inquiry did not establish that a crime had occurred.