'Honestly, have no idea': Peltola repeats denial as DOJ seeks ballot segregation amid probe
WASHINGTON, DC: Alaska Democratic Senate nominee Mary Peltola has reiterated that she is unaware of Dan J Sullivan’s candidacy as a spoiler candidate, as it has been alleged that her campaign has strategically placed the second Sullivan in the race to confuse voters and dilute the ballot.
Peltola’s denial came a day after the Department of Justice issued several subpoenas and document-preservation requests as part of its investigation into the Alaska Senate race. The Justice Department also asked a federal judge on Friday to issue an order segregating ballots ranking Dan J Sullivan.
Mary Peltola denies role in alleged second Sullivan scheme
Peltola again said that she had no knowledge of anyone in her campaign trying to recruit candidates named Dan Sullivan to confuse voters in the Senate race. She told a local reporter that she was confident she could win the race regardless.
“I have no idea. I honestly have no idea,” Peltola said when a local news source asked at her Friday night, October 30, rally about the New York Times report.
According to the investigative report, Democratic operatives sought out a man who shares Sen Dan Sullivan's name and encouraged him to run, hoping to pull votes away from the Republican incumbent.
Alaska is among the battleground midterm seats, where Mary Peltola and incumbent GOP Senator Dan Sullivan have locked horns.
Alaska uses ranked-choice voting, allowing voters to rank multiple candidates.
“This is offensive to me on a number of different levels. First of all, this is Alaska. We’re not in the business of tricking each other up here. The second thing is, I know I can win this race. I’ve known since Day 1,” Peltola said in response to the report.
Peltola was then asked about her former campaign manager, who was released from all responsibilities in August and who talked to an outlet about the alleged attempt by the campaign.
“Well, you know, clearly these folks are gone. They’re gone for a good reason. If I could fire them again, I would be happy to fire them again,” Peltola said.
DOJ asks court to order ballot segregation in Alaska race
The Department of Justice asked a federal judge on Friday to issue an order before Monday directing Alaska election officials to segregate all ballots ranking Senate candidate Dan J Sullivan as it continues its investigation into his candidacy.
Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward wrote in a court filing that state officials should “preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J Sullivan for the purposes of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation become necessary.”
“These modest precautionary measures will be impossible after Election Day, so there is good cause for expedited consideration,” he added.
