Mary Peltola Sues Alaska for Absentee Voter Records as Senate Race Stays Uncalled
Democrat Mary Peltola's campaign has gone to court to obtain confidential voter records while absentee ballots are still under review in Alaska's uncalled Senate race against Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan.
Alaskans for Mary sued the Division of Elections, Director Carol Beecher and Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom in Anchorage Superior Court on Friday.
The campaign wants copies of daily records showing which absentee ballots are likely to be accepted or rejected. According to the Alaska Department of Law, those records identify individual voters by name and address.
What the Campaign Wants
The lawsuit cites Alaska's public records law. The campaign asked for expedited handling, a temporary restraining order and an injunction so it can get the records before the results are certified.
It first asked regional election offices for the absentee register on Oct. 27, a week before Election Day. It followed up Wednesday and demanded the records by Thursday afternoon, but state lawyers declined to hand them over right away.
Peltola's campaign says it needs the information to check whether officials wrongly rejected or questioned ballots cast by its supporters, and to learn why individual ballots were flagged.
"We are confident that Mary will win this race," the campaign said, describing the lawsuit as a push for transparency and accuracy while the count continues.
State Says the Records Are Confidential
Alaska's Department of Law says the state has treated these preliminary records as confidential for years. It says the campaign is seeking the information before decisions are final and before the affected voters can see it themselves.
Authorized observers can view some daily records under confidentiality agreements, but the division keeps the records and restricts distribution during the review.
The state argues the campaign has no right under Alaska's constitution and laws to get the records this way. It says producing them while employees are reviewing ballots would add work and could delay the count. The department said it will ask the court to keep protecting the information.
READ MORE: DOJ Moves to Preserve Alaska Ballots as Probe Into Second 'Dan Sullivan' Heats Up
The division normally publishes totals of rejected absentee ballots broken down by reason. Voters whose ballots are rejected later receive letters explaining why, but those letters arrive weeks after the result is known.
A Razor-Thin Count
Peltola led Sullivan by about 600 votes in Friday's reporting, with absentee ballots from remote communities still being counted. The division also planned an update on Monday.
Eligible ballots can arrive through Nov. 18, when the division expects to run its ranked-choice tabulations. The campaign's filing lists updated counts scheduled for Nov. 10, Nov. 13 and Nov. 18.
Alaska and Mississippi were the only two Senate races still uncalled as of Friday. In Mississippi, Democrat Scott Colom is challenging Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith.
The Alaska race has been clouded by a second Daniel J. Sullivan, a teacher who also appeared on the ballot. Peltola's campaign faced allegations that it tried to recruit people with Sullivan's name to enter the race, and she denied wrongdoing.
President Donald Trump has demanded that the "real" Dan Sullivan be declared the winner, and the Justice Department has separately sought to block certification if the incumbent loses, citing potential voter confusion over the two names.