Federal Prosecutor Confirms Criminal Probe in Alaska Senate Race

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Harris
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Key Points

  • U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman confirmed Friday that a criminal investigation tied to Senate candidate Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. has run for several months.
  • Heyman would not name any crime, target or legal theory. No charges have been announced.
  • In a separate civil case, the Justice Department asked a federal judge to order Alaska to segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan, with a ruling by Monday, Nov. 2.
  • Mary Peltola and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee deny any role in his candidacy, and the state says segregating ballots would break ballot secrecy.
  • Defendants’ final filings on motions to dismiss the federal suit are due at noon Alaska time Saturday (4 p.m. ET).

The top federal prosecutor in Alaska confirmed Friday that his office is conducting a criminal investigation connected to the state’s U.S. Senate race, the first public acknowledgment of an Alaska Senate criminal probe centered on how a second Dan Sullivan got onto the ballot.

The announcement came four days before the Nov. 3 election, as the Justice Department separately asked a judge to set aside ballots ranking that candidate.

What happened

U.S. Attorney Michael J. Heyman of the District of Alaska told reporters at a news conference in Anchorage that the investigation has run “quietly for several months,” CBS News reported. He said recent reporting “has resulted in a significant surge of law enforcement assets” to Alaska, according to CBS News and the Associated Press.

Heyman pointed to a New York Times report published Wednesday. As described by CBS News, NBC News and the AP, the Times reported that people tied to Democratic nominee Mary Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee helped recruit Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher from Petersburg, to run against Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan. None of those allegations has been proven in court.

“We are aware of the recent New York Times reporting,” Heyman said, adding that his office is “taking that extremely seriously,” according to CBS News. He would not say which crimes are under review or who may be involved. “I’m not making any assumptions on whether a crime has been committed or not,” he said, as reported by CBS News and Alaska’s News Source (KTUU).

Asked by CBS News why the department was acting so close to Election Day, Heyman said, “We’re not escalating anything except to the extent that a new article came out.” He also urged the public to share tips with the FBI, the AP and KTUU reported.

Prosecutors issued dozens of subpoenas and records preservation requests this week, the AP and NBC News reported. Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy has also ordered a state investigation, according to CBS News and the AP.

The ballot request

In the separate civil lawsuit, filed last week to block prompt certification if the senator loses, Justice Department lawyers asked U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason to order election officials to “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.” CBS News, NBC News and the AP reported the filing.

The department also sought a preliminary injunction and fast-tracked discovery of Peltola campaign and DSCC communications about any effort to recruit Daniel J. Sullivan, NBC News and CBS News reported. The filings are on the court’s public docket in United States v. State of Alaska.

Latest development

Status as of 8:30 a.m. ET Saturday, Oct. 31: No ruling on the ballot request had been reported, and the newest entries on the public docket were dated Friday. No charges have been announced in the criminal investigation.

A Friday order from Gleason gave the Justice Department until 1 p.m. Alaska time that day to answer three motions to dismiss its amended complaint, and it filed a response. The motions come from the state, from the Peltola campaign together with the DSCC, and from intervenors including Common Cause and the League of Women Voters of Alaska. Replies are due by noon Saturday Alaska time, or 4 p.m. ET, according to the docket and CNBC.

The state opposed the request to fast-track the ballot motion. Its lawyers argued that votes are “comingled in the ballot box on Election Day,” so ballots cannot be separated without violating ballot secrecy, and that the ballots “will not reveal any voter’s reasons” for a ranking, CBS News reported. The state added that it already keeps ballots for 22 months.

Denials

Peltola has denied any involvement. “I knew nothing about any other candidates on the ballot except for me and the incumbent,” she said Thursday in Juneau. “I am not interested in tricking voters.” Her remarks were reported by the AP and CBS News. At a rally Friday evening, she said she was “so deeply offended by these accusations,” NBC News reported.

The DSCC has said it was “not involved with Dan J. Sullivan,” NBC News reported, and Democrats have repeatedly denied any campaign trick, according to the AP. Daniel J. Sullivan has long denied running at Democrats’ behest, the AP reported.

Why it matters

The Alaska seat is one of a handful of contests expected to decide control of the U.S. Senate, according to the AP and CNBC. Republicans hold 53 of the chamber’s 100 seats.

The ballot lists the senator as Dan S. Sullivan, a registered Republican and the incumbent. The second candidate appears as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. with no party affiliation, according to the AP and the state’s court filings. Alaska uses ranked choice voting with four Senate candidates, so a voter can rank both Sullivans. Our explainer on how ranked choice ballots are counted walks through the rounds.

It is highly unusual for federal prosecutors to confirm a criminal investigation, the AP noted, and the department has long avoided public steps close to an election that could be seen as influencing the outcome. President Donald Trump has said he asked the department to file the civil case, the AP and CNBC reported.

What happens next

Gleason could rule on the dismissal motions, the ballot request, or both before Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The Justice Department asked for a decision by Monday.

Prosecutors have not said when the criminal investigation might conclude or whether any charges will follow. Background on the original suit is in our earlier report on the Justice Department’s bid to hold up the Alaska result.

Related live coverage

Follow court filings and campaign news on the U.S. Politics Live center, and find race guides and results pages in our 2026 midterm elections hub.

Sources