DOJ sues to block Alaska election results if GOP incumbent loses

The Trump administration sued Alaska on Thursday to block certification of election results if incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses. Why it matters: The race between incumbent Sullivan, Democrat Mary Pelota, and retired teacher Dan Sullivan has been marked by controversy, with Republicans accusing Democrats of trying to confuse voters by planting a candidate with the same name.Alaska's use of ranked-choice voting complicates matters, eliminating candidates in rounds if no one gets 50% of the initial vote. "An election result may be impacted by voter confusion if: (1) Senator Sullivan does not win the election; and (2) had all votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan been cast instead for Senator Sullivan and Alaska's rank-choice process played out accordingly, Senator Sullivan would have won the election," the lawsuit, filed in Alaska District Court, states. Editor's note: This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

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