Alaska's Murkowski knocks DOJ for suing against Senate election results
HUNT VALLEY, Md. (TNND) — Senator Lisa Murkowski, the Alaska Republican and occasional Trump administration critic, knocked the Justice Department Friday for preparing to reject the state's Senate election results.
Incumbent Republican Dan S. Sullivan is trailing his Democratic opponent Mary Peltola in the polls by a few percentage points, while a second GOP candidate, Dan J. Sullivan, lags far behind. Senator Sullivan's seat is at risk mostly because of his attachment to the president and their party's unpopular governance, but his longshot opponent could receive a small share of the vote.
The Justice Department asked a federal court last week to block the results if Peltola wins and the Sullivans' combined tallies are greater than hers, prompting a disapproving X post by Murkowski.
"Alaskans don't need any help voting for their preferred candidates, and the State of Alaska has always handled this by clearly distinguishing the candidates on this year's ballot," she wrote. "The Department of Justice should have never filed this lawsuit."
Alaska's ballots identify Senator Sullivan as the GOP incumbent. The state released its design this past summer after the Alaska Supreme Court rejected a Republican attempt to remove the outsider Sullivan from the ballot.
President Donald Trump told reporters he pushed the Justice Department to file the lawsuit, suggesting Dan J. Sullivan is a Democrat in disguise. The National News Desk hasn't been able to reach that Sullivan for comment, and it hasn't received an immediate response from the DOJ.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said during a Sunday CNN interview that he's only trying to ensure the integrity of Alaska's elections, rejecting suggestions he and Trump are laying the groundwork to overturn the results, as the president attempted in 2020.
"The fact that I'm saying that voters, that they're so confused by what a candidate has done in literally making up a candidacy to try to confuse voters, that we're gonna try to create a situation where that can be remedied, that shouldn't be something that is causing this shock and horror," Blanche said. "That should be what every single Alaskan expects of their government."
Senator Sullivan hasn't immediately returned The National News Desk's request for comment, but his team isn't exactly embracing the administration's strategy. A spokesman told The Associated Press that they'll let the lawsuit "run its course."
"Alaskans can tell the difference between a Democrat sideshow and Senator Sullivan's strong record of delivering for Alaska," the spokesman said.
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