Sullivan says he will accept Alaska Senate result even if he loses

Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan says he will accept the result of Alaska’s 3 November Senate election even if he loses, despite accusing his Democratic opponent of dishonesty over the recruitment of a similarly named candidate.

Asked on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday whether he would accept the result only if he won, Sullivan replied: “No, I’m going to accept the election results.” He is seeking a third term against Democrat Mary Peltola.

His pledge contrasts with President Donald Trump’s position: Trump has said a narrow Peltola victory should not be recognised and pushed for a Justice Department lawsuit over the presence of the other candidate, retired teacher Daniel J. Sullivan.

The New York Times reported that Peltola’s campaign was involved in efforts to recruit the second Sullivan. The senator accused Peltola of lying when she said she had not known about the effort, arguing that her staff could not have kept it from her. Peltola has denied knowing about it, and her campaign said it had no involvement in Daniel J. Sullivan’s campaign.

The two men are identified differently on the ballot: the senator is listed as the Republican incumbent, while Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. has no party affiliation. The latter received 2.47% of the vote in the primary, enough to qualify for the ranked-choice general election. That figure does not establish how many people, if any, voted for him by mistake.

On Sunday, a federal judge dismissed the Justice Department’s lawsuit seeking to block certification in certain circumstances pending an investigation of votes for Daniel J. Sullivan. Judge Sharon Gleason said the department had not offered a workable way to conduct such an inquiry while preserving ballot secrecy. The dismissal was on jurisdictional grounds, not a final ruling on the recruitment allegations. The department has filed notice of an appeal, according to the Associated Press.