Blanche says DOJ is "doing our own research" with Alaska challenge

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Cite

Hubbard, K. (2026, October 25). Blanche says DOJ is "doing our own research" with Alaska challenge. CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/todd-blance-alaska-senate-challenge-dan-sullivan/

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

CBS News · collected 2026-10-25 · by Kaia Hubbard

Quick Summary

Attorney General Todd Blanche announced that the Justice Department is challenging the certification of Alaska’s Senate election if voter confusion over two candidates named Dan Sullivan affects the outcome. The DOJ filed its lawsuit last week, aiming to prevent certification if evidence shows voters were misled by ballot instructions or rankings. This move comes as incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan faces a tight race against Democratic candidate Mary Peltola, with another Daniel J. Sullivan complicating the election due to Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-25, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit on October 23, 2026, seeking to delay the certification of Alaska’s Senate election result if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan narrowly loses to Democrat Mary Peltola. The reason given by the DOJ is that another candidate named Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher registered as an independent, may have caused voter confusion. This lawsuit aims to prevent Alaska from certifying the election results if Senator Sullivan loses by fewer votes than Daniel J. Sullivan receives.

The case centers around two candidates with similar names: Dan Sullivan (incumbent Republican senator) and Daniel J. Sullivan (retired teacher running as an independent). Despite attempts by the incumbent's campaign to remove Daniel J. Sullivan from the ballot, Alaska’s Supreme Court ruled that both can remain on it. The DOJ argues that Daniel J. Sullivan's candidacy is designed to benefit Peltola by reducing votes for Senator Sullivan.

Attorney General Todd Blanche defended the lawsuit, stating that it aims to ensure accurate voting rather than interfere in the democratic process. However, some Democrats and election officials are concerned about potential federal interference in state elections, particularly as President Trump has won Alaska with a significant margin but faces a competitive Senate race. The DOJ maintains that this action is not part of any broader strategy by Trump to challenge unfavorable election outcomes.

Election officials across the country are preparing for possible legal challenges and disputes over voting results that could disrupt certification processes in the upcoming midterm elections on November 3, 2026. Despite these concerns, Blanche asserts that the DOJ’s intervention is necessary to prevent voter confusion and ensure fair electoral practices. The Alaska case remains a focal point of discussions regarding federal-state election dynamics and democratic integrity.

Written for “DOJ Sues To Block Alaska Election Results” on 2026-10-25, grounded in this article and the 14 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 DOJ Sues To Block Alaska Election Results
Politics · 15 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 8% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
DOJ Is Suing to Decertify Alaska’s Senate Results—But Only If Republicans Lose same event · 100%
Mother Jones
⚖️ Leans right 🔴 18% hedged 3 of 17 📰 publisher trust 95
“Both articles discuss the DOJ filing a lawsuit to decertify Alaska’s Senate election results if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses, citing voter confusion due to another candidate named Dan Sullivan.”
Trump administration sues to block certification of upcoming Alaska election same event · 100%
BBC News
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 32% hedged 6 of 19 📰 publisher trust 69
“Both articles discuss the Trump administration and Justice Department filing a federal lawsuit to block certification of Alaska's Senate election if Dan Sullivan loses.”
Dan Sullivan vs Dan Sullivan: Why is Trump’s DOJ suing in Alaska? same event · 100%
Al Jazeera
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 24% hedged 16 of 66 📰 publisher trust 60
“Both articles describe the DOJ filing a lawsuit to prevent certification of Alaska’s Senate election if there is evidence that voters were confused by two candidates named Dan Sullivan.”
Legal expert calls out Trump’s threat to delegitimize Alaska senate vote same event · 100%
Global News
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 12% hedged 2 of 17 📰 publisher trust 63
“Both articles describe the DOJ filing a lawsuit to challenge Alaska's Senate election certification if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses, occurring on October 24 and elaborated upon the following day.”
Democrats sue Trump administration over alleged election pressure campaign different event · 95%
ABC News (US)
⚖️ Leans strongly left 🔴 12% hedged 2 of 17 📰 publisher trust 70
“The articles describe different legal actions taken by the Justice Department related to election issues, not the same specific incident.”
Trump accuses Democrats of ‘scam’ in Senate race with two Dan Sullivans: ‘It’s confusing’ different event · 95%
The Independent
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 8% hedged 2 of 24 📰 publisher trust 59
“Article A discusses Trump's accusation of cheating regarding the confusion with two Dan Sullivans, while Article B reports on Attorney General Blanche's statement about the DOJ's actions to prevent certification if there is voter confusion. These are different events related to the same election issue.”
Blanche won't rule out DOJ blocking election certification in 'doomsday' scenario different event · 95%
Fox News
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 13% hedged 3 of 23 📰 publisher trust 67
“The articles describe different instances of Attorney General Todd Blanche addressing potential federal involvement in elections, but they refer to distinct scenarios and times.”
Trump Sues to Block Alaska Senate Election Results Because of Potential Voter "Confusion" same event · 95%
Reason
⚖️ Leans left 🔴 13% hedged 3 of 23 📰 publisher trust 67
“Both articles describe the Trump Justice Department filing a federal lawsuit to block Alaska Senate election results due to potential voter confusion over two similar-sounding Republican candidates.”
Trump DOJ sues to block Alaska vote count as bizarre battle of dueling Dan Sullivans threatens GOP majority same event · 95%
Daily Mail
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 37% hedged 7 of 19 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe the Justice Department's lawsuit filed to block Alaska from certifying its Senate election results if Republican Senator Dan Sullivan loses, initiated by President Trump.”
Justice Department sues to block Alaska Senate race results if Republican loses same event · 95%
CBS News
⚖️ Leans right 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 2 📰 publisher trust 66
“Both articles describe the Justice Department's lawsuit to block Alaska Senate race certification under specific conditions, initiated at President Trump's direction.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

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Claims extracted
25
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
8%
2 of 25 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
CBS News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
15
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-25 · how these are computed

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Who wrote this

Kaia Hubbard
34 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Peltola's events on Sunday and Monday would be rescheduled in the coming days, the campaign said.
2026-10-25 · assertive framing · Alaska Senate candidate sustains "minor injuries" in car accident
🔮 But the challenger appealed the decision, and the state Supreme Court later affirmed that he could appear on the ballot, paving the way for both Sullivans' names to appear.
2026-10-25 · assertive framing · Blanche says DOJ is "doing our own research" with Alaska challenge
🔮 Senate Majority Leader John Thune campaigned with GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson in Iowa on Friday in his latest effort to prop up Republican candidates on the campaign trail, emphasizing how the Hawkeye State, reliably red in recent elections, now may hold the key to control of the Senate.
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🔮 President Trump is set to rally Thursday with Rep. Ashley Hinson in Iowa as he seeks to boost Republican candidates in a political environment that has dimmed for the party — prompting modest pushback from the very candidates he's supporting.
2026-10-22 · assertive framing · Trump rallying with Hinson in Iowa as she pledges to push back on White House
🔮 "It may very well have been some sort of a technical glitch, I don't know for sure."
2026-10-18 · assertive framing · Rep. Turner calls for congressional probe into Starlink disruption
🔮 "In the unlikely scenario where we lost the majority, I would expect my colleagues would ask me to continue leading this conference, even if we have divided government," Johnson told CBS News' Robert Costa in an interview near Johnson's hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana.
2026-10-12 · assertive framing · "Heaven forbid": Mike Johnson says he intends to stay on as GOP leader
🔮 Pappas, who's represented New Hampshire in the House since 2019, is facing off against former GOP Sen. John Sununu in a race that could be key to determining which party controls the Senate.
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Also by Kaia Hubbard
Alaska Senate candidate sustains "minor injuries" in car accident
2026-10-25 · CBS News
Thune campaigns with Ashley Hinson as Senate GOP zeroes in on Iowa
2026-10-24 · CBS News
Trump focuses on farmers in Iowa visit, as GOP struggles on fertile ground
2026-10-23 · CBS News
Trump rallying with Hinson in Iowa as she pledges to push back on White House
2026-10-22 · CBS News
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 34 articles by Kaia Hubbard →

Topics

Alaska Republican Senate the Justice Department the state Supreme Court

Subjects

Alaska GPE · 7× Blanche PERSON · 4× Tillis PERSON · 3× Dan Sullivan PERSON · 2× Republican NORP · 2× Senate ORG · 2× Trump PERSON · 2× the Department of Justice ORG · 2× the Justice Department ORG · 2× the state Supreme Court ORG · 2×

Narrative

"I'm not sure why they thought they had to file a lawsuit, other than as Todd said earlier, make sure that you have the ballots right so we can be certain that the Democrats were not successful in confusing candidates to vote for someone else to better position Peltola for being the winner," Tillis said.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-25
🔮 But the challenger appealed the decision, and the state Supreme Court later affirmed that he could appear on the ballot, paving the way for both Sullivans' names to appear.
2026-10-25 · CBS News
Blanche says DOJ is "doing our own research" with Alaska challenge · assertive framing

Claims (25 extracted, 2 hedged)

Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday that the Justice Department was looking to "put guardrails in place" with its move to prevent the Alaska Senate election from being certified if there is evidence that voters were confused by a second Dan Sullivan on the ballot. asserted
voters → say → ballot
"This is the Department of Justice doing our own research under the law," ."The Justice Department last week to preemptively challenge the certification of Alaska's Senate race if the Republican incumbent, Sen. Dan Sullivan, loses. asserted
incumbent → do → race
Sullivan is facing off against Democratic candidate Mary Peltola in next week's election, in a race that has appeared closer than initially expected in a state that President Trump won in 2024 by double digits. asserted
Trump → face → digits
But the state has a top-four primary and ranked-choice voting election system, with another candidate adding a wrinkle to the race. asserted
candidate → have → race
Daniel J. Sullivan, a former teacher who shares the same first and last name with the sitting senator, announced in June that he was entering the race, prompting a push by the incumbent senator to remove him from the ballot. asserted
he → share → ballot
That month, an Alaska election official determined he was not eligible to appear on the ballot, citing a "determined effort and a deliberate attempt" to confuse Alaska voters. asserted
he → determine → voters
But the challenger appealed the decision, and the state Supreme Court later affirmed that he could appear on the ballot, paving the way for both Sullivans' names to appear. uncertain
names → appeal → way
Blanche emphasized Sunday that the DOJ's lawsuit is "not saying, 'don't certify.'" asserted
lawsuit → emphasize → ?
But if a court determined that the race was decided "because of confusion, and not the will of the voters," then the Justice Department does not think the state should certify the election. asserted
state → determine → election
The attorney general argued that it may "be obvious from the results and from the ballots that voters were confused," though he acknowledged that "we don't know what's going to happen yet." "That could be obvious from the way that they rank the Dan Sullivans, or not including a Dan Sullivan on the ballot, I don't know yet because there hasn't been an election," Blanche said. uncertain
Blanche → argue → ballot
"But all we are doing is trying to put guardrails in place so that if that happens, there's a system allowed where the ballots are kept in a way so that we can determine whether there was confusion." asserted
we → do → way
Pressed on why the challenge was filed 11 days before Election Day, Blanche said the administration had hoped that the state Supreme Court "would actually issue an opinion and explain their reasoning." asserted
Court → press → reasoning
He said that it's an issue the president has been talking about for months, saying, "This isn't something new that just came up last week." asserted
that → say → months
Asked Friday about the Justice Department's lawsuit, Mr. Trump told reporters, "Well, I'm the one that said, 'do it.'" asserted
that → ask → it
Blanche said he had "no idea" to whom the president was referring, and would not discuss his own personal communications with the president. asserted
president → say → president
Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a Republican " on Sunday, said he thinks it's appropriate "to take a look at" the situation in Alaska. asserted
it → say → Alaska
"I'm not sure why they thought they had to file a lawsuit, other than as Todd said earlier, make sure that you have the ballots right so we can be certain that the Democrats were not successful in confusing candidates to vote for someone else to better position Peltola for being the winner," Tillis said. asserted
Tillis → think → Peltola
The comments came after GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Alaska's other senator, on Friday said she was opposed to the Justice Department's move. asserted
she → come → move
"Alaskans don't need any help voting for their preferred candidates, and the State of Alaska has already handled this by clearly distinguishing the candidates on this year's ballot," Murkowski wrote in a post on X. " asserted
Murkowski → need → X.
The Department of Justice should never have filed this lawsuit." asserted
Department → file → lawsuit
The sitting senator's name will be noted as "(Registered Republican) Incumbent" on the ballot. asserted
name → sit → ballot
Asked about Murkowski's comments, Tillis said, "there are very few people that know Alaska better than Lisa." asserted
that → ask → Lisa
Tillis said he doesn't mind "looking at it," but "I do mind the appearance of filing a lawsuit before we even know if the facts that would substantiate a lawsuit actually occur." asserted
that → say → lawsuit
The Peltola campaign, meanwhile, has called the DOJ's move "a despicable political threat to overturn an election." asserted
campaign → call → election
"We will fight to ensure every single eligible voter in Alaska can make their voice heard and that no bureaucrat or politician from the Lower 48 can interfere with our lawful, secure elections," said Peltola campaign spokesperson Harry Child. asserted
Child → fight → elections
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