The Alaska Division of Elections is facing a lawsuit from Mary Peltola’s Senate campaign after the campaign requested records identifying voters whose absentee ballots were rejected. The legal action, filed in Anchorage Superior Court on November 6, seeks an injunction to expedite the release of the absentee register—a document listing whether each returned absentee ballot was accepted or rejected, along with the reasons for rejection.
The campaign, represented by Alaskans for Mary, argues that the requested records are critical to ensuring transparency and accuracy in the vote-counting process as officials finalize results. The lawsuit requests a temporary restraining order to compel the state to provide the information before the November 18 certification deadline. As of the latest count, Peltola trails incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) by approximately 640 votes, with roughly 74% of ballots tallied.
State officials respond to records request
The Alaska Department of Law has stated that the absentee ballot data sought by the campaign is preliminary and confidential. In a response to the lawsuit, the department argued that releasing the information in the manner requested could disrupt ballot processing and delay the certification timeline. The state has not yet publicly detailed its full reasoning for withholding the records.
Legal and political context
The lawsuit follows a broader debate over absentee voting procedures in Alaska, where mailed ballots and those from remote communities play a decisive role in close races. The campaign’s filing asserts that without prompt access to the records, it cannot verify whether qualified voters’ ballots were wrongly rejected, particularly in communities where mail-in ballots are common. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has previously raised concerns about the campaign’s conduct in a separate federal case, alleging that Peltola’s team misled the court regarding efforts to recruit a spoiler candidate in the race.
Federal investigation into spoiler allegations
Separately, federal prosecutors issued a subpoena to Gerald Heikes, a long-shot Republican candidate in the Senate race, days before the midterm elections. The subpoena, part of an ongoing criminal investigation, seeks records related to alleged efforts by operatives aligned with Peltola’s campaign to recruit spoiler candidates—including one sharing a name with Sen. Sullivan. Peltola has denied any involvement in such efforts. The investigation, led by the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, is ongoing, and Heikes has stated he was not recruited but ran independently.
Election timeline and uncertainty
Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system requires a candidate to secure more than 50% of the vote to avoid a runoff. With no candidate currently above that threshold, the final outcome will not be determined until November 18, when election officials tabulate second-choice preferences. The tight margin and the potential impact of absentee ballots have heightened scrutiny over the vote-counting process.