DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification
Lawsuit cites voter confusion over two candidates named Dan Sullivan.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification
Photograph: The Independent (embedded from source)
What this story says
- The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit to block the certification of Alaska's U.S. Senate race.
- President Donald Trump claimed a second candidate named Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. was placed on the ballot to siphon votes from the GOP incumbent.
- Attorney General Todd Blanche stated the head of the Alaska Election Commission expressed concern over voter confusion.
- Blanche was interviewed on "Face the Nation" and "State of the Union" regarding the lawsuit.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 11 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 2 of the 13 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .
Trust
42/100
Craft
57/100
Hype
65/100
13 sources · methodology
The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit aimed at preventing the certification of Alaska's U.S. Senate race. The legal action was initiated following concerns about voter confusion arising from the presence of two candidates named Dan Sullivan on the ballot. President Donald Trump asserted that a second candidate, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., was intentionally placed on the ranked-choice ballot to divert votes from the Republican incumbent, Dan Sullivan.
Disagreement on Trump's involvement
Reports differ on whether President Trump directed Attorney General Todd Blanche to file the lawsuit publicly. Todd Blanche stated in an interview that he would never discuss communications with the president. However, one report indicates that Trump claimed on camera to have told the DOJ to file the lawsuit, a statement Blanche denied having heard directly from the president. Blanche also denied that President Trump told him to file the lawsuit publicly.
What the coverage left out
None of the left-rated reports mention the head of the Alaska Election Commission expressing concern over voter confusion. None of the right-rated reports mention Senator Lisa Murkowski's criticism of the lawsuit or President Trump's subsequent social media attack on her. No centre-rated outlet ran this story at all.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 1 time, most recently on 26 Oct 2026, 23:00, and will add the sides that appear.
How other outlets pictured it
Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.
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Crooks and Liars — embedded from source
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
7 rated outlets
- Left-rated reports focused on the lawsuit as an attempt to interfere with election results and highlighted Attorney General Todd Blanche's testy exchanges with interviewers. The Independent and Crooks and Liars presented full reports, with The Independent noting Senator Lisa Murkowski's criticism of the lawsuit and Trump's subsequent social media attack on her. Crooks and Liars detailed Blanche's interview with Margaret Brennan on "Face the Nation," quoting exchanges where Brennan pressed Blanche on Trump's alleged directive to file the suit and the lawsuit's wording regarding voter confusion. Raw Story cited a "White House source" warning of plans to discredit election losses, with Blanche reportedly leading legal efforts. Newser and News One, along with Magic 95.5 FM and 1053rnb.com, focused on Blanche defending the lawsuit and becoming agitated when questioned about it, with headlines describing him as getting "testy" or "humiliated."
Centre
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated centre has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Right
4 rated outlets
- Right-rated reports highlighted Attorney General Todd Blanche's assertion that the head of the Alaska Election Commission, not President Trump or Blanche himself, expressed concern over voter confusion. Breitbart's digest stated that Blanche said the election commission head noted the second Dan Sullivan was running solely to confuse voters. Real Clear Politics framed the story around media misleading viewers about the lawsuit, quoting Blanche telling CBS's Margaret Brennan that the Justice Department was "doing our own research under the law." Bizpac Review focused on Blanche's response to CNN's Dana Bash, quoting his reaction of "That is crazy!" to a question about a "nightmare election scenario."
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification?
- Of the 11 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 64% are rated left, 0% are rated centre, 36% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 13. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification left or right?
- Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 11 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
- Is the coverage of DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification biased?
- DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification is one event reported by 13 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which outlets covered DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification?
- 13 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- Why did the Department of Justice file a lawsuit regarding the Alaska Senate race?
- The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit to block the certification of the Alaska U.S. Senate race results. The action was taken due to concerns about voter confusion caused by two candidates named Dan Sullivan on the ballot.
- What was President Trump's claim regarding the second candidate named Dan Sullivan?
- President Donald Trump claimed that a second candidate, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., was placed on Alaska's ranked-choice ballot as a deliberate strategy to siphon votes away from the Republican incumbent, Dan Sullivan.
- Did Todd Blanche say President Trump told him to file the lawsuit publicly?
- Todd Blanche denied that President Trump told him to file the lawsuit publicly. While Trump claimed on camera to have directed the DOJ to file the suit, Blanche stated he would not discuss communications with the president and denied hearing such a directive directly.
Read it at the source
13 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
7- Insider sounds alarm on 'embarrassed' Trump's next midterm move: 'We all need to brace' (opens Raw Story in a new tab)
Raw Story — is Raw Story biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- 'I’m Quoting from It': AG Todd Blanche Snaps at CBS Anchor Over Trump’s Alaska Scheme, Then Gets Caught Denying What His Own Lawsuit Says (opens Atlanta Black Star in a new tab)
Atlanta Black Star — is Atlanta Black Star biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Todd Blanche Gets Testy Defending Trump’s Latest Election Interference Lawsuit (opens News One in a new tab)
- White Defenders Alaska Suit, Slams 'Crazy' Question (opens Newser in a new tab)
- Blanche’s Own Words Turned Against Him In Alaska Suit (opens Crooks and Liars in a new tab)
Crooks and Liars — is Crooks and Liars biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Todd Blanche goes off on CNN when asked about Trump overturning midterms (opens The Independent in a new tab)
The Independent — is The Independent biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Todd Blanche defends DOJ lawsuit over Senate election in Alaska (opens The Washington Post in a new tab)
The Washington Post — is The Washington Post biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Right
4- DOJ defends decision to sue Alaska over ‘Decoy Dan’ confusion (opens Alaska Watchman in a new tab)
Alaska Watchman — is Alaska Watchman biased? Our profile of this outlet
- CNN’s Dana Bash raises nightmare election scenario — Todd Blanche fires back: ‘That is crazy!’ (opens Bizpac Review in a new tab)
Bizpac Review — is Bizpac Review biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Media Misleading Viewers & Voters About Alaska Lawsuit (opens Real Clear Politics in a new tab)
Real Clear Politics — is Real Clear Politics biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
- AG Blanche: Head of Alaska Election Commission Concerned Over Voter Confusion (opens Breitbart in a new tab)
Not rated
2- Todd Blanche Gets Testy Defending Trump’s Latest Election Interference Lawsuit (opens 1053rnb.com in a new tab)
1053rnb.com — is 1053rnb.com biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Todd Blanche Gets Testy Defending Trump’s Latest Election Interference Lawsuit (opens Magic 95.5 FM in a new tab)
Magic 95.5 FM — is Magic 95.5 FM biased? Our profile of this outletOpinion
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