US Attorney Michael J. Heyman speaks during a press conference as the Justice Department investigates allegations that Democrats recruited potential spoiler candidates to run in Alaska’s US Senate race, ahead of the midterm elections, at the US Attorney’s Office in Anchorage, Alaska, US, Oct. 30, 2026.
Kerry Tasker | Reuters
The U.S. attorney in Alaska said Friday that there is an “ongoing” criminal investigation of the state’s U.S. Senate race in connection with the presence of a second candidate with the name Dan Sullivan on the ballot.
The probe is occurring as the Department of Justice pursues a related civil lawsuit to potentially block quick certification of that race’s result because of possible voter confusion due to retired schoolteacher Dan Sullivan being on the ballot with the incumbent Republican senator of the same name.
The DOJ’s suit claims the “sole purpose” of the non-incumbent Sullivan running was to benefit the campaign of Democratic nominee Mary Peltola by reducing the number of votes for Sen. Sullivan. The DOJ says that if Sen. Sullivan loses by a share of voters that could be attributable to confusion about which Sullivan voters meant to select, an investigation should be conducted to determine voter intent.
“We will not let anyone or any group undermine this election,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman at a press conference in Anchorage, which was held just four days before Election Day.
“There is both a civil investigation and a criminal investigation that is ongoing,” Heyman said. “There is a surge of FBI resources and resources in this office.”
“Every Alaskan deserves a fair election, and they’re going to get one,” the prosecutor said.
He said that the criminal probe has been underway for months. Heyman had previously recused himself from the probe because he was being considered for a judicial nomination, but that recusal was rescinded Thursday because he was no longer under consideration.
Heyman said the criminal investigation has been accelerated because of a New York Times report on Wednesday that said aides Peltola’s campaign and senior aides at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee helped recruit the retired teacher to enter the Senate race with the hope of drawing votes from the incumbent Sullivan.
“When credible information comes out, we are committed to pursuing that information … and we will act on it,” Heyman said.
Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC deny being involved in the retiree’s Senate campaign.
Heyman, when questioned by reporters, would not say what criminal statute might have been violated
Earlier Friday, a federal judge kept on a fast track efforts to dismiss the DOJ’s suit.
Judge Sharon Gleason ordered the DOJ to respond by 1 p.m. Alaska Time to the new dismissal motions, which were filed hours after the department amended its suit in U.S. District Court in Anchorage on Thursday to add a new legal claim.
The DOJ’s updating of the civil complaint forced Gleason to rule the prior dismissal motions were moot.
Gleason gave state election officials, the campaign of Democratic nominee and other groups until noon Saturday to reply to the DOJ’s response.
U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan, a Republican, and former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, are U.S. Senate candidates for Alaska.
Kent Nishimura | Jabin Botsford | The Washington Post | Getty Images
The judge’s order leaves open the possibility that she will rule on the dismissal motions before Tuesday, which is Election Day, as both the state and Peltola’s campaign have requested.
The state, the campaign, and other intervenors in the suit argue the DOJ has no legal authority to block certification of an election because two candidates on a four-candidate ballot happen to share the same name.
The winner of Alaska’s race could determine which party holds a majority in the Senate starting in January. Republicans currently have 53 seats in the 100-member chamber.
Alaska’s election uses ranked-choice voting. If no candidate obtains more than 50% of the vote in the first count, then the fourth-place finisher will be eliminated, and the second choice on that candidate’s ballots will be allocated to the remaining candidates.
Only Peltola and Sen. Sullivan are considered likely to draw large shares of the votes.
The DOJ’s suit seeks to delay certification of the Senate election if Sen. Sullivan loses by a margin that could be attributable to voter confusion over the presence of the other candidate, who is listed as Daniel J. Sullivan, on the ballot.
Dan J. Sullivan, a candidate in Alaska’s U.S. Senate race who shares his name with the incumbent seeking reelection, talks with a reporter in Petersburg, Alaska, July 3, 2026.
Becky Bohrer | AP
The amended complaint, which updates the suit filed Oct. 23, added a claim under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution to the first claim, under the National Voter Registration Act.
It also contained added details from the Times article.
Peltola’s campaign, in its dismissal motion filed Thursday, said, “Rather than defend its indefensible legal claims as it was ordered to do, the Department of Justice … has filed an Amended Complaint that does nothing to address the fatal problems that preclude it from bringing this case or obtaining the relief that it seeks.”
“The U.S. Constitution leaves the regulation of federal elections exclusively to the States and to Congress, and DOJ has no statutory authority to bring this case,” the motion said.
In their own dismissal motion, state election officials said the amended lawsuit “rests on the same meritless theory that the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA) — a voter registration law — governs this case, which has nothing to do with voter registration.”
“Because this reading of the NVRA fails, the amended complaint fails,” the motion said.
