--- title: "DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/doj-sues-to-block-alaska-senate-race-certification" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/doj-sues-to-block-alaska-senate-race-certification" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/doj-sues-to-block-alaska-senate-race-certification.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/doj-sues-to-block-alaska-senate-race-certification" category: "Politics" area: "United States" published: "2026-10-26T22:46:11.918Z" source_reported: "2026-10-26T20:32:32.000Z" updated: "2026-10-26T22:46:11.918Z" trust_score: 42 critic_score: 57 hype_score: 65 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-10-26T21:22:37.057Z" --- # DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification *Lawsuit cites voter confusion over two candidates named Dan Sullivan.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 42 of 100, higher is better. Central claim attributed to "sources say" and relies on anonymous sourcing, with limited named sources. - Craft 57 of 100, higher is better. Reporting is largely digests, with limited original reporting and few quotes from affected parties. - Hype 65 of 100, lower is better. Headlines promise more than the body delivers, with sensational language and manufactured urgency. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - 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. 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. ## Who covered it Shares of the 11 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 64% (7) - Centre: 0% (0) - Right: 36% (4) 2 of 13 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-10-26T21:22:37.057Z. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 1 time; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-10-26T23:00:27.746Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - 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 No separate framing summary. ### Right - 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." ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - mixed: 5 - high: 5 - unknown: 2 - veryHigh: 1 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [Alaska Watchman](https://alaskawatchman.com/2026/10/26/doj-defends-decision-to-sue-alaska-over-decoy-dan-confusion) — DOJ defends decision to sue Alaska over ‘Decoy Dan’ confusion - [Raw Story](https://rawstory.com/trump-election-lawsuit-2678147031) — Insider sounds alarm on 'embarrassed' Trump's next midterm move: 'We all need to brace' - [Atlanta Black Star](https://atlantablackstar.com/2026/10/26/ag-todd-blanche-snaps-at-cbs-anchor) — '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 - [News One](https://newsone.com/6874841/todd-blanche-defends-election-interference-lawsuit) — Todd Blanche Gets Testy Defending Trump’s Latest Election Interference Lawsuit - [Magic 95.5 FM](https://mycolumbusmagic.com/3925668/todd-blanche-defends-election-interference-lawsuit) — Todd Blanche Gets Testy Defending Trump’s Latest Election Interference Lawsuit - [1053rnb.com](https://1053rnb.com/6272023/todd-blanche-defends-election-interference-lawsuit) — Todd Blanche Gets Testy Defending Trump’s Latest Election Interference Lawsuit - [Bizpac Review](https://bizpacreview.com/2026/10/26/cnns-dana-bash-raises-nightmare-election-scenario-todd-blanche-fires-back-that-is-crazy-1664916) — CNN’s Dana Bash raises nightmare election scenario — Todd Blanche fires back: ‘That is crazy!’ - [Newser](https://newser.com/story/398830/blanche-defends-alaska-suit-slams-crazy-question.html) — White Defenders Alaska Suit, Slams 'Crazy' Question - [Crooks and Liars](https://crooksandliars.com/2026/10/todd-blanche-humilated-when-own-words-used) — Blanche’s Own Words Turned Against Him In Alaska Suit - [Real Clear Politics](https://realclearpolitics.com/video/2026/10/25/attorney_general_blanche_upbraids_cbss_magaret_brennan_for_lying_to_viewers_on_alaska_senate_race.html) — Media Misleading Viewers & Voters About Alaska Lawsuit - [The Independent](https://independent.co.uk/bulletin/news/todd-blanche-trump-midterm-results-b3073072.html) — Todd Blanche goes off on CNN when asked about Trump overturning midterms - [Breitbart](https://breitbart.com/clips/2026/10/25/ag-blanche-head-of-alaska-election-commission-concerned-over-voter-confusion) — AG Blanche: Head of Alaska Election Commission Concerned Over Voter Confusion - [The Washington Post](https://washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/10/25/todd-blanche-defends-doj-lawsuit-over-senate-election-alaska) — Todd Blanche defends DOJ lawsuit over Senate election in Alaska ## Questions **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. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/doj-sues-to-block-alaska-senate-race-certification. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "DOJ Sues to Block Alaska Senate Race Certification", https://mediabias.news/politics/doj-sues-to-block-alaska-senate-race-certification