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The U.S. Department of Justice expanded its lawsuit regarding dueling Senate candidacies in Alaska, adding a new claim under the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause. The amended complaint follows reports regarding the recruitment of a retired teacher who shared a name with incumbent Senator Sullivan.
Amended Complaint and Legal Arguments
The Justice Department stated that the political group Alaskans for Mary and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) orchestrated a sham campaign to mislead voters and help candidate Mary Peltola. US Top News and Analysis reported that the updated filing cites a report from The New York Times regarding the alleged recruitment of the retired teacher. In a separate filing Thursday, the DOJ argued that the new claim renders pending motions to dismiss the case by the state, Peltola’s campaign, and the DSCC moot, citing 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals precedent.
U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason had set a deadline for the DOJ to respond to motions seeking to dismiss the original complaint before the November 3 election. The judge has not yet ruled on whether those dismissal motions are now moot. Meanwhile, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy ordered the state Department of Public Safety to investigate whether the alleged recruitment violated civil or criminal laws.
State and Campaign Responses
Alaska Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher and state election boards filed a motion asking Judge Gleason to expedite consideration of a motion to dismiss the amended complaint, criticizing the DOJ’s legal maneuver. “The Court should not tolerate this gamesmanship,” the motion stated. Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC filed a separate motion to dismiss the amended complaint with prejudice before Election Day, calling the filing a transparent attempt to keep the case alive and interfere in the election.
The original DOJ lawsuit, filed on October 23, aims to block the state from certifying any Senate election results affected by voter confusion pending an investigation. President Donald Trump stated that he ordered the Department of Justice to file the suit.
Subpoenas and Political Stakes
The political stakes in the race are significant, as the winner could impact the power balance in the Senate. Concurrently, NBC News reported that the Justice Department issued at least three dozen new subpoenas and document preservation requests to Peltola’s campaign offices and those of the retired teacher Sullivan.
Peltola’s campaign previously denied involvement in the retiree’s campaign and released a statement defending her run. “Mary got in this race because Alaskans deserve a champion who is fighting to lower their costs and put Alaska first, and no tweet or threat from any politician will keep her away from that fight,” the campaign said.
