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Trump demands Alaska give votes to Republican Senate candidate as he tries to salvage disastrous midterms: Live updates

Read the original at The Independent ↗
Cite

Singh, N., Sommerlad, J., Keane, I., Dobkin, R., & Lubin, R. (2026, November 5). Trump demands Alaska give votes to Republican Senate candidate as he tries to salvage disastrous midterms: Live updates. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/midterm-election-results-trump-news-live-updates-b3079857.html

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

The Independent · collected 2026-11-05 · by Namita Singh, Joe Sommerlad, Isabel Keane, Rachel Dobkin, Rhian Lubin

Quick Summary

President Trump has taken to his social media platform Truth Social to demand that votes cast for independent Senate candidate Dan Sullivan in Alaska be transferred to the incumbent Republican with the same name. This comes as Trump attempts to salvage some positive outcomes from a midterm election where Republicans lost control of both chambers of Congress. Trump’s intervention highlights his frustration and desire to influence ongoing vote counts in close races.
Written by AI on 2026-11-05, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Mary Peltola's campaign, the Democratic candidate running against Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan in Alaska’s Senate race, was involved in efforts to recruit another person named Dan Sullivan to run as a third-party candidate. This attempt aimed to confuse voters and potentially sway the election outcome, which could determine control of the U.S. Senate. The New York Times reported that texts between Peltola's campaign members discussed recruiting such a candidate. Election authorities initially tried to disqualify this second Dan Sullivan but failed, leading to both candidates with similar names appearing on the ballot. President Donald Trump has since called for votes cast for the independent Dan Sullivan and another "slug" candidate to be given to the Republican incumbent, declaring the election over.

Written for “Alaska Senate Race Controversy” on 2026-11-05, grounded in this article and the 105 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The model judged this article politically coded and scored it +0.35, but all 2 of its quote(s) are attributed speech - words the article quotes from someone, not the article's own narration, so the score is not published.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score withheld for article 131820: attributed speech only · logged 2026-11-05

Story

📰 Alaska Senate Race Controversy
Politics · 106 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 25% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Washington Examiner
Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 69/100
New York Post
Hedges 3 of 16 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A discusses the process of vote counting in Alaska's Senate race, while Article B reports on President Trump's demand for votes to be reassigned from an independent candidate to Republican Dan Sullivan, which is a separate development.”
Washington Examiner
Hedges 0 of 2 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A reports on Sen. Dan Sullivan's pledge to accept election results, while Article B discusses President Trump's demand for votes to be reassigned to Sullivan.”
The Straits Times
Hedges 5 of 23 claims Outlet record 66/100
“Article A describes Senator Dan Sullivan's accusation of election cheating on the day of voting, while Article B discusses President Trump's demand for votes to be reassigned days later.”
Dawn
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 2 of 34 claims Outlet record 72/100
“The articles describe different aspects of the midterm election outcomes and subsequent actions by Trump, with Article A summarizing overall results on November 4th and Article B detailing a specific demand from Trump regarding vote counting in Alaska on November 5th.”
Al Jazeera
Hedges 5 of 40 claims Outlet record 60/100
“While both articles discuss issues related to the Alaska Senate race, they describe different aspects: Article A mentions delays in counting votes and ballot stacking concerns, while Article B focuses on President Trump's demands regarding vote allocation.”
The Independent
Hedges 1 of 16 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles describe different time periods of Trump's reactions to the Alaska Senate race, with Article A focusing on an initial court decision and Article B detailing subsequent demands for vote allocation changes after midterms.”
Al Jazeera
⚖️ Leans right Hedges 2 of 21 claims Outlet record 60/100
“Article A discusses Senator Sullivan's acceptance of election results, while Article B focuses on Trump demanding that votes be given to the Republican Dan Sullivan, indicating different moments in the electoral process.”
Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans strongly left Hedges 2 of 4 claims Outlet record 69/100
“Article A discusses Democrats recruiting an impostor candidate named Dan Sullivan, while Article B focuses on President Trump's demand to transfer votes from an independent candidate (referred to as 'Fake Dan') to the incumbent Republican Dan Sullivan. Although both involve controversies around the same election and name, they describe different specific incidents.”
Fox News
Hedges 0 of 18 claims Outlet record 68/100
“Article A describes voter reactions after an alleged election scheme in Alaska, while Article B reports on President Trump's demands regarding vote allocation for Dan Sullivan in the aftermath of midterm elections.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
16
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
25%
4 of 16 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
59/100
The Independent's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
106
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-05 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Independent · 3810 article(s) · 10 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 10 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Namita Singh
29 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state.
🔮 Davide Tamburella was sacked from the La Costa restaurant in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley on 20 May, a fortnight after a meeting with the management to discuss concerns about his performance.
🔮 The Armed Response Command (ARC), which officially began operations on Sunday, will deploy specially trained officers across tourist hotspots, crowded public spaces, sporting venues, major events and places of worship in New South Wales (NSW).
🔮 The pause could last deeper into November, sources told the Wall St Journal, and comes despite the fact that Russia continues to target energy and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.
🔮 Though his party has conceded defeat in Sunday’s election, Bolsonaro has refused to accept the result of the vote and fled the country after the Trump administration announced it would give him and his family visas.
🔮 Serhii Beskrestnov, an adviser to president Volodymyr Zelensky, rejected that claim, arguing the restrictions would have made it “physically impossible” for Ukraine to use Starlink in the types of strikes he described. “It is very strange that Elon Musk is unaware of the operational limitations of Starlink in Ukraine,” he said noting, that Starlink’s civilian system in Ukraine “does not function over the territory of Russia”.
🔮 Such attacks could wreck supply chains or make businesses’ payment systems fail, he said, while natural risks such as flooding and wildfires also pose a threat.
🔮 Providing an update to the media on behalf of their family, he said her road to “recovery will be long and difficult, but we know she is fighter.”
🔮 According to Mayo Clinic, it is characterised by motor issues, sensory changes, as well as autonomic dysfunction.
🔮 “There was a deliberate act, it would appear.
Also by Namita Singh
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 29 articles by Namita Singh →
Joe Sommerlad
78 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state.
🔮 Axios now reports that Vance has been lambasting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for dragging the U.S. back into the Middle East, warning the president that the war was “highly unpopular and could cost Republicans the election,” albeit to no avail.
🔮 Erika Kirk wound up her post by pledging that TPUSA would study Tuesday’s results in search of “conservative, free market solutions” to voters’ problems and keep on “building the permanent infrastructure Charlie envisioned.”
🔮 President Donald Trump has warned that any attempts to impeach him would “destroy” the Democrat Party after his party lost its control of Congress.
🔮 They are expected to wield the powers of the congressional committees to launch probes into the president and his inner circle.
🔮 Trump may struggle to repeat that feat this time, with his full-throated endorsement of data centers and dismissive attitude towards affordability concerns much more likely to frustrate conservatives who expected more help from him.
🔮 Overall, Democrats will need to flip four Senate seats and three House seats to gain the majority.
🔮 President Donald Trump and his Republicans are about to get “trounced” in Tuesday’s midterm elections, former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci has predicted.
🔮 President Donald Trump is facing a potentially disastrous midterms Election Day Tuesday, with his Republican Party set to lose its majority in the House of Representatives and perhaps the Senate too, according to current polling.
🔮 Some polls are open for Tuesday’s crucial midterm elections, which will decide majority control of Congress for the final two years of Donald Trump’s presidency.
Also by Joe Sommerlad
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 78 articles by Joe Sommerlad →
Isabel Keane
94 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin warned “deportations would continue” after the Republican Party lost control of Congress in a crushing midterm defeat.
🔮 In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state.
🔮 President Donald Trump complained that “it’s so dark outside, so early” and called on Congress to pass the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent, in a Truth Social rant just a day after his party lost control of Congress in the midterm elections.
🔮 “The Ballroom will be a Planned Parenthood,” one X user proclaimed, referring to the $600 million project that Trump tore down the East Wing of the White House to build.
🔮 He previously indicated that he wouldn’t spend so much in elections after that, saying in May 2025, weeks after a costly loss in a Wisconsin Supreme Court race, “In terms of political spending I’m going to do a lot less in the future.”
🔮 Overall, Democrats will need to flip four Senate seats and three House seats to gain the majority.
🔮 Some polls are open for Tuesday’s crucial midterm elections, which will decide majority control of Congress for the final two years of Donald Trump’s presidency.
🔮 Election guru Steve Kornacki found one set of data that may give President Donald Trump and Republicans a reason to be hopeful ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections.
🔮 “The easy thing to do would be to just immediately refund people, and if there were issues with certain refunds, deal with those consumers individually, and that didn’t happen here,” Roberts told the outlet.
🔮 President Donald Trump said he would be willing to protect Elon Musk and his staff if Democrats take control of Congress after the midterm elections this week.
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Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 94 articles by Isabel Keane →
Rachel Dobkin
111 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state.
🔮 “I’m here to keep a Jihadist Muslim Brotherhood member from becoming a United States senator,” Trump said, adding that El-Sayed “would be the only senator that will have to go through a metal detector before he's allowed to go into the Senate.”
🔮 If you sign up to this service we will earn commission.
🔮 GET OUT AND VOTE FOR GREG — HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
🔮 Trump suggested he is willing to work with Democrats on some issues, but would not compromise on immigration or transgender policies.
🔮 “I wasn’t on the ballot, and if I was, we would have won IN A LANDSLIDE!” he wrote on Truth Social.
🔮 As election returns came in, Trump’s staunch base painted a grim picture of the state of the GOP and what the last two years of his presidency will look like. “What is happening...Democrats are winning EVERYTHING!!!
🔮 Mary Trump, the president’s estranged niece, sarcastically thanked Trump for his “betrayal of the American people” that ensured “Democrats win in a way that will make your life miserable for the next two years--and make our lives better.”
🔮 President Donald Trump made a risky move by starting a war in Iran eight months before the midterms — and it may not have paid off.
🔮 “And getting hurt would mean you lose the Senate.
Also by Rachel Dobkin
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 111 articles by Rachel Dobkin →
Rhian Lubin
52 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state.
🔮 He warned the effects of the midterm results would be felt for years to come.
🔮 Overall, Democrats will need to flip four Senate seats and three House seats to gain the majority.
🔮 Republicans are bracing for a tough night ahead as it appears the president could be on track to lose major gains he made with two key groups of voters in 2024 - young people and Latinos, Politico reports.
🔮 Election officials in Westchester County, New York, said they were aware of problems with voting scanners - and ballots not being scanned properly - and assured the public that every vote would be counted. But Miller, the wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, seized on the social media post of a voter in Westchester County - where Republican incumbent Rep. Mike Lawler in a tight race against Democrat Cait Conley in New York’s 17th Congressional District race - and used it to cast doubt on election integrity.
🔮 She will get punished plenty,” another lawmaker told the outlet.
🔮 Some polls are open for Tuesday’s crucial midterm elections, which will decide majority control of Congress for the final two years of Donald Trump’s presidency.
🔮 “Only fools would vote for him in the Michigan race for the U.S. Senate!
🔮 Her attorney, Peter Ticktin, separately told MSNOW that Trump should be ready to “enter an emergency order that basically would be tantamount to martial law.”
🔮 President Donald Trump is set to deliver his “closing argument” to midterm voters at the iconic Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C. - a site dogged by the administration’s botched repair job.
Also by Rhian Lubin
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 52 articles by Rhian Lubin →

Topics

Alaska Dems Republican Senate Truth Social

Subjects

Dan Sullivan PERSON · 5× Senate ORG · 5× Trump PERSON · 5× Alaska GPE · 3× Republican NORP · 3× Democrats NORP · 2× Dems NORP · 2× Republicans NORP · 2× Truth Social ORG · 2× Donald Trump PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Mamdani calls midterms win an ‘opportunity’ for Democrats but urges them not to forget working class New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whose own election triumph last year now looks like an indicator of what was to come, had this to say about the midterms last night: Amy Acton let Vivek Ramaswamy’s concession call go to voicemail after repulsive attack ad Ohio’s new governor enjoyed a very sweet moment indeed after winning her race, snubbing her Republican rival after he decided to run an ad in which her estranged mother, to whom she has not spoken in 48 years, accused her of lying about being raped by her stepfather as a child. Jasmine Fernandez has more.
framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-05
🔮 In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state.

Claims (16 extracted, 4 hedged)

President Donald Trump has argued that Alaska should hand over votes cast for the independent Senate candidate Dan Sullivan to the Republican incumbent with the same name as the state continues to count its ballots. asserted
state → argue → ballots
Desperate for some good news after losing control of the House and Senate in a midterms wipeout Tuesday, the president took to Truth Social to argue: “The vote totals for the Fake Dan Sullivan, plus the other ‘slug’ that the Dems put on the Ballot, should be immediately given to the REAL Dan Sullivan, and the Election is over – He easily wins. asserted
He → lose → Sullivan
In another Senate race where votes are still being counted – Mississippi – Democrats believe they could be on course for at least one last major upset, with candidate Scott Colom in with a chance of unseating GOP incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith in the traditionally deep red southern state. uncertain
they → count → state
As the election fallout continues, Vice President JD Vance has reportedly raged in private about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dragging the U.S. into the war with Iran that cost them so badly at the polls. uncertain
that → continue → polls
Are Trump’s phone calls now being screened by his constant companion Natalie Harp? asserted
calls → screen → companion
The president’s ever-present aide now appears to be deciding who he can speak to. asserted
he → appear → who
Andrew Feinberg takes a closer look. asserted
Feinberg → take → look
Trump demands Alaska give votes to Republican Senate candidate Here’s the latest from the president on Truth Social as he desperately tries to salvage some good news from Tuesday’s midterms mauling with the votes still being counted in Alaska: “The vote totals for the Fake Dan Sullivan, plus the other ‘slug’ that the Dems put on the Ballot, should be immediately given to the REAL Dan Sullivan, and the Election is over – He easily wins. asserted
He → demand → Sullivan
Trump lashed out at Stephen Miller for going ‘too far’ with deportations after Melania complained: report The president reportedly hit out at his deputy White House chief of staff, the architect of the administration’s aggressive immigration operation, for going “too far” after first lady Melania Trump complained to her husband. uncertain
Trump → lash → husband
Rhian Lubin has the story. asserted
Lubin → have → story
James Talarico: The man who stood up to Trump the bully – and won Texas Here’s an in-depth profile of the man of the hour from Alex Hannaford. asserted
who → stand → Hannaford
Chuck Schumer posts meme of himself grilling Republicans The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart once complained that the Senate Democratic leader had “no rizz,” a criticism he may have been listening to, judging by this post. uncertain
he → post → post
Mamdani calls midterms win an ‘opportunity’ for Democrats but urges them not to forget working class New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whose own election triumph last year now looks like an indicator of what was to come, had this to say about the midterms last night: Amy Acton let Vivek Ramaswamy’s concession call go to voicemail after repulsive attack ad Ohio’s new governor enjoyed a very sweet moment indeed after winning her race, snubbing her Republican rival after he decided to run an ad in which her estranged mother, to whom she has not spoken in 48 years, accused her of lying about being raped by her stepfather as a child. Jasmine Fernandez has more. asserted
Fernandez → call → more
DeSantis says midterms ‘rebuke’ came because of ‘lack of productivity from Republicans' One of the most clear-eyed conservatives to address Tuesday’s vote so far has been Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who appeared on Laura Ingraham’s Fox News show last night to deliver some home truths to his party. asserted
who → say → party
Trump is not the first leader who won’t say sorry for a disastrous war asserted
who → say → war
After a war that had more to do with vanity than sanity cost him, the president will find a sympathetic ear on a certain member of his so-called Board of Peace, says Simon Walters. asserted
Walters → have → Peace
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