Donald Trump Says Alaska Ballot Is Illegal 'Because It's Unfair' as DOJ Sues

Asked by a reporter how a second Dan Sullivan on Alaska's Senate ballot could be illegal rather than just unfair, President Donald Trump said, "I think it's illegal because it's unfair, if it's unfair. You want fairness in voting."

The clip begins partway through Trump's answer. The Justice Department has sued over Alaska's Senate race, where Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan faces Democrat Mary Peltola. The suit was filed less than two weeks before the November 3 election, and Trump has said it was his idea.

"Well, I'm the one that said, 'do it,'" Trump told reporters on Friday, CBS News reported.

What Trump Said About the Alaska Ballot

The clip opens with Trump mid-sentence: "...the ballot. And that's very unfair. That's just outright cheating. So we're before the court to see what you can do." He said voters were "totally confused" and asked that the senator at least be allowed to "use the name Senator Dan Sullivan, as opposed to incumbent, because a lot of people don't know what incumbent means."

He also went after the second candidate, retired Petersburg teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr.: "They come up with a guy who's never partook in any election, was never involved. I think he wasn't even a voter."

Trump did not name Peltola or the Justice Department in the clip. He closed by saying, "I think Dan Sullivan's doing great if they don't make it unfair."

What the DOJ Lawsuit Actually Asks For

The complaint alleges that Daniel J. Sullivan's candidacy violates the National Voter Registration Act, CBS News reported. It asks that ballots be preserved and, if the senator loses but would have won with the votes cast for the other Sullivan, that the result be investigated.

CBS's headline described the suit as an effort to block certification. Attorney General Todd Blanche rejected that reading: "The Department of Justice does not seek to stop any ballot from being cast or to stop the certification of Alaska's election." He said the goal is to preserve ballots so Alaska officials can decide "whether Alaskan voters were confused or mislead."

The ballot already separates the two men. It lists the senator as "Sullivan, Dan S. (Registered Republican) Incumbent" and the retired teacher as "Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.," according to Al Jazeera. Derek Muller, an election law professor, told Al Jazeera the government's argument has "essentially no likelihood of success."

Peltola's campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have asked a federal judge to dismiss the suit, calling it "an unprecedented pre-emptive strike on democratic elections." Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, said the department "should never have filed this lawsuit," CBS News reported.

How Daniel J. Sullivan Got on the Ballot

Alaska's elections director, Carol Beecher, removed Daniel J. Sullivan from the ballot in June, ruling that he had filed "in bad faith to purposely confuse voters." Superior Court Judge Thomas Matthews reversed that decision. He wrote that Beecher had relied on a "previously unstated, 'good-faith' criteria" that appears nowhere in the state constitution or state law, Alaska Public Media reported. The Alaska Supreme Court upheld his reinstatement, Alaska's News Source reported.

Under Alaska's top-four primary, the four candidates with the most votes advance to November regardless of party. With 93 percent of precincts reporting in the August primary, Peltola had 48.2 percent, the senator had 42.9 percent and Daniel J. Sullivan had 2.4 percent, Alaska's News Source reported. The general election uses ranked-choice voting. If no one wins a majority, the last-place candidate is eliminated and those ballots move to voters' next choices.

What Happens Next in Alaska's Senate Race

Peltola leads the senator 47.6 percent to 44.2 percent in PolitiKool's polling average for Alaska. Control of the chamber is a toss-up in PolitiKool's Senate forecast.

The court has not yet set a hearing date for the Justice Department's suit, NBC News reported. That suit rests on the National Voter Registration Act, not on a fairness standard, and Democrats have asked a federal judge to dismiss it.