The Department of Justice has moved to intervene in Alaska's upcoming U.S. Senate election.
Posted by The NPR Politics Podcast, Checked
- Sources
- 4 support2 context
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 85%
The NPR Politics PodcastOct 26, 2026
The Department of Justice has pressured states to look into allegations of illegal voting by noncitizens, and has moved to intervene in Alaska's upcoming U.S. Senate election. What is the department's goal, and what are the implications? This episode: senior political correspondent Tamara Keith, voting correspondent Miles Parks, and justice correspondent Ryan Lucas. …
As of 2026-10-26, the DOJ had already moved to intervene in Alaska's Senate election by filing a federal lawsuit (around Oct 22-23) to block certification if Sen. Dan Sullivan lost narrowly, which multiple sources describe as an intervention in the race.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What we found
Supports. The Detroit News reported on Oct 23 that the Justice Department had moved in a federal lawsuit to preemptively block certification of Alaska's Senate results if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses, describing it as a bid to intervene in the outcome.[3]
Supports. The Independent reported that government attorneys filed the lawsuit asking that Alaska not certify results that could be affected by voter confusion, with Trump saying he ordered the suit.[4]
Supports. The NYT, republished by the Inquirer on Oct 26, described the DOJ's lawsuit as a new preemptive tactic to challenge certification of Alaska's Senate election before Election Day.[5]
Supports. The NYT reported on Oct 24 that the department asked a federal court to block certification of the Alaska election, calling it an extraordinary effort in the Senate race.[2]
Context. On Nov 1 a federal judge dismissed the DOJ lawsuit and the department said it would appeal; this later development does not change the state of affairs on Oct 26.[1][6]
Sources
6 sources: 1 fact-checker, 1 tier 2, 4 not rated
- 1Judge dismisses lawsuit seeking to block certification of Alaska Senate race if GOP incumbent losesapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: context
- 2Alaska Election Gambit Shows Justice Dept. Has Bowed to Trump's ...nytimes.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 3DOJ moves to block Alaska Senate result if Republican losesdetroitnews.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 4Trump boasts he ordered DOJ to sue Alaska to get election ...independent.co.uk · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Trump's election attacks enter new preemptive phaseinquirer.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6Judge throws out DOJ attempt to delay certification of Alaska ...us.cnn.com · not rated · cited for: context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit regarding the presence of Daniel Sullivan on the Alaska ballot.True
- The Department of Justice is investigating the recruitment of a spoiler candidate in the Alaska Senate race.True
- The Department of Justice filed lawsuits in California and Alaska regarding election law.True
- The Department of Justice requested that Alaska delay certifying the election if the Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan loses by a small margin, pending an investigation into voter confusion.True
- The GOP-led government of Alaska is pushing back against the Justice Department regarding the state's election process.True