Judge fast-tracks bids to toss Trump's Alaska Senate suit. Alaska says it has no legal basis.

A federal judge has fast-tracked efforts to toss the Justice Department's lawsuit over Alaska's U.S. Senate race, and on Tuesday Alaska's own election officials asked her to throw it out.

U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason on Monday granted expedited consideration of motions from Democrat Mary Peltola's campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to join the case and dismiss it before the Nov. 3 election. In her order, she noted the department filed suit "after Alaskans had already begun casting their ballots for the November 2026 election," and nearly four months after the Alaska Supreme Court ordered the second Sullivan onto the ballot.

What the government wants

The Justice Department sued Oct. 22, asking the court to block certification if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses but would have won with the votes cast for challenger Daniel J. Sullivan. It claims the two names may confuse voters. President Trump said he directed the suit. Its only legal claim rests on the National Voter Registration Act, a law about registering voters. (Our earlier coverage.)

Alaska pushes back

On Tuesday, the state's Department of Law, representing the Division of Elections and its director, Carol Beecher, urged Gleason to dismiss the case "immediately," Alaska Public Media reported. The state wrote that the suit "has no legal basis" and that delaying certification only if one candidate loses "would interfere with state election administration and threaten election integrity."

The state argued that the ballot already tells the two men apart, that probing voters' intent would break the secret ballot, and that the registration law doesn't cover counting or certification. Beecher asked for a ruling by Nov. 2, according to Democracy Docket.

Joshua Douglas, a University of Kentucky law professor, told Alaska Public Media: "This case is a press release disguised as a lawsuit."

What's next

Gleason plans to decide by 5 p.m. Wednesday, Alaska time, who may join the case, ABC News reported. A ruling on dismissal could come as early as Thursday night or Friday. She has not said whether she will hold a hearing. The ACLU, representing voters, the League of Women Voters of Alaska and Common Cause, has also asked to intervene.

A suit that would put only one candidate's loss under review, filed after voting began, casts doubt on an election before it ends. We condemn it.

Sources

• State of Alaska says DOJ lawsuit over Senate race 'has no legal basis' (Alaska Public Media)
• Judge appears skeptical of DOJ's legal maneuvering in Alaska lawsuit (ABC News, via ABC Audio)
• Judge fast-tracks Democrats' bid to dismiss Trump's Alaska lawsuit (Democracy Docket)
• 52 U.S.C. § 20501, National Voter Registration Act findings and purposes (Cornell LII)