World
US Midterms: Trump Orders Lawsuit To Stall Certification Of Alaska Senate Result If GOP Loses
By: News18 World
Published: 23 October 2026
Photo / Illustration: Haldwani Times News Desk
<p>US President Donald Trump on Friday said he personally ordered a Justice Department lawsuit seeking to delay certification of Alaska’s Senate election result if the Republican incumbent loses in the November 3 midterm elections.</p>
<p>“I’m the one that said, ‘Do it’," Trump told reporters during a visit to Florida, where he is due to cast his early ballot.</p>
<p>The lawsuit, filed on Thursday, seeks to prevent certification of a Democratic victory under specific circumstances. The midterms will determine control of Congress, where Republicans currently hold narrow majorities.</p>
<p>The US Justice Department alleges that the presence of a candidate named Dan J Sullivan Jr on the Alaska ballot is a deliberate attempt to confuse voters and hurt Republican Senator Dan Sullivan’s chances against Democrat Mary Peltola.</p>
<p>“The sole purpose of his candidacy is to benefit the Peltola campaign by reducing the number of votes for Senator Sullivan," the lawsuit said.</p>
<p>Sullivan Jr, a registered Republican, and Democrats have denied the allegation.</p>
<p>The lawsuit seeks to delay certification of a Democratic win if the incumbent’s losing margin is smaller than the number of votes received by his namesake, pending an investigation.</p>
<p>Trump’s intervention comes as Democrats seek to regain control of the House of Representatives and potentially win the Senate by flipping Republican-held seats, including Alaska.</p>
<p>US Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Justice Department was not preparing to interfere in the midterms but declined to rule out every possibility.</p>
<p>“To say that there’s no circumstances that we would ever do that. Of course, I’m not going to say that," he said, referring to what he called a “doomsday scenario".</p>
<p>Legal analyst Derek Muller called the case as “absurdly thin" and unlikely to succeed.</p>
<p>“There’s essentially no likelihood of success," Muller wrote on the Election Law Blog.</p>
<p>Sullivan Jr was briefly removed from the ballot earlier this year but was reinstated by an Alaska lower court. The state’s Supreme Court upheld that decision.</p>
<p>Trump, who challenged his 2020 election defeat to Democrat Joe Biden, has repeatedly questioned the integrity of US elections ahead of the midterms. Democrats have accused his administration of seeking greater federal control over state-run elections, claims that have added to concerns surrounding the upcoming vote.</p>
<p>US President Donald Trump ordered a Justice Department lawsuit to seek a delay in certifying Alaska's Senate election result if the Republican incumbent loses to Democrat Mary Peltola. The lawsuit claims that the presence of another candidate named Dan J Sullivan Jr on the ballot is a deliberate attempt to confuse voters and hurt Republican Senator Dan Sullivan's chances.</p>
<p>The Justice Department lawsuit seeks to prevent the certification of a Democratic victory in Alaska if the incumbent Republican's losing margin is smaller than the total number of votes received by his namesake, Dan J Sullivan Jr, pending an investigation.</p>
<p>Legal experts are highly skeptical of the challenge, with legal analyst Derek Muller describing the case as absurdly thin and noting that there is essentially no likelihood of success. Additionally, while US Attorney General Todd Blanche declined to completely rule out intervention under extreme scenarios, he stated the department was not preparing to interfere in the midterms.</p>
