A federal judge in Alaska threw out the Justice Department’s lawsuit seeking to stop certification of the state’s Senate race if Sen. Dan S. Sullivan (R-AK) loses.
This comes after it was revealed that members of Democrat nominee Mary Peltola’s campaign sought out candidates with the same name as the incumbent to confuse voters into diluting the Republican’s share of votes.
From CBS News:
U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason wrote in a 20-page order Sunday that the Justice Department did not have proper legal standing to bring the suit last week. The suit asked Gleason to block the state's election results from being certified because a teacher named Daniel J. Sullivan is also on the state's ballot, alleging that his candidacy deliberately sought to confuse voters by running with the same ballot name and party affiliation as the state's incumbent senator.
The Justice Department argued that Daniel J. Sullivan's name on the ballot potentially diverted voters, and the Democrat running in the race, Mary Peltola, would benefit as a result.
The Justice Department "provides no workable plan as to how it proposes to segregate ballots cast for Daniel J. Sullivan on Election Day and then conduct a court-ordered unspecified 'investigation' of those ballots in a manner that would preserve voter secrecy," Gleason wrote, adding that the it "failed to satisfy its burden to show that its alleged injury is redressable by a court order."
The Justice Department filed a notice of appeal on Sunday.
Earlier, a DOJ spokesperson told CBS News that the federal judge 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.
"Alaskan voters deserve a fair election, not to be misled in an attempt to rig outcomes," the spokesperson said.
Peltola UPDATE: The Justice Department filed its notice of appeal on Sunday, hours after Judge Gleason dismissed its Alaska ballot lawsuit. DOJ says Gleason dismissed on procedural grounds and never disputed its argument that Daniel J. Sullivan entered the race as a frivolous candidate to confuse voters. DOJ spokesperson: "Alaskan voters deserve a fair election, not to be misled in an attempt to rig outcomes." The FBI criminal probe is still running. Election Day is Tuesday. The appeal is live. The probe is live. Alaska votes in two days.
— The Scoop (@TheScoop_US) November 1, 2026
The case centers on Daniel J. Sullivan, also known as “Decoy Dan,” who filed as a candidate back in May.
The New York Times published an in-depth report explaining how Peltola campaign aides and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) staffers recruited the decoy for this plot. The DSCC and Peltola’s campaign have denied involvement.
During an interview, Peltola said she is “not interested in tricking voters.”
The Department of Justice wanted the court to block certification so it could conduct an investigation into whether people voted for the decoy because they were confused.
The judge did not rule on whether Decoy Dan had been recruited specifically to confuse voters and did not address the New York Times report.
The Justice Department pushed back on the ruling, noting that while the court “dismissed the case on procedural grounds,” it “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.”
Decoy Dan’s campaign came under scrutiny shortly after he filed and it became apparent that he was acting as a spoiler candidate. Some pointed out how his campaign website and marketing materials were made to resemble that of the real Dan Sullivan.
The DSCC issued a statement celebrating the ruling, calling it “a victory for democracy and a clear message to Donald Trump and Senate Republicans: No one, no matter how powerful, can toss out free and fair elections just because they don't like the result.”