Alaska Says Ballot Segregation Impossible

What happened

Updated Oct 31, 6:22pm ET

Alaska told a federal judge that segregating ballots for the second Sullivan would be impossible without violating voter privacy. The Justice Department is seeking to set aside those ballots and halt certification if Democratic candidate Mary Peltola wins, saying it wants to protect election integrity while investigating voter confusion. Alaska’s Republican-led government asked Judge Sharon L. Gleason to dismiss the suit as meritless and let the state count and certify without federal interference. The race pits Peltola against Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan, with Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. also on the ballot, and could decide Senate control. The Times reported Democratic involvement in recruiting him; Peltola denied involvement. Gleason set Saturday as the deadline for arguments on whether to dismiss the lawsuit without a hearing.

How the left told it

Left-leaning outlets framed the case as an unjustified federal move against a possible Democratic win, while also highlighting ballot-access fights. The Los Angeles Times stressed criticism from election-law experts of the federal complaint. Raw Story pointed to The New York Times’s account of early-voting failures affecting rural Alaskans. Joe.My.God. featured the DSCC’s weaponization charge.

How the right told it

Right-leaning outlets treated the objection as a serious blow to the federal case, while splitting over whether the probe was justified or politically decisive. The New York Post emphasized the state’s objection as devastating to the lawsuit. Fox News linked the probe to precedent from Biden-era Trump prosecutions. The Daily Mail lingered on voters who said the scandal would not change their choices. The Gateway Pundit cast the second Sullivan as a Democratic decoy.