Civil rights groups have warned that the FBI could be about to question Alaska voters about which candidate they intended to support in the state's closely watched Senate election, raising concerns about voter privacy and potential intimidation. In a court filing submitted October 31, lawyers representing the League of Women Voters of Alaska, Common Cause and two individual intervenors argued that such questioning by law enforcement agents about ballots would be "Orwellian and illegal." In Alaska's Senate election, Republican incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan is seeking re-election against former Democratic Congresswoman Mary Peltola. However, retired teacher Daniel J.
Sullivan Jr. is also on the ballot. The warning and court action stem from a dispute over whether the two candidates with similar names will cause voter confustion. The controversy has also prompted an FBI investigation into whether donors were misled about which candidate they were supporting.
In the filing, the groups said questioning voters would be unlawful and could undermine the right to a secret ballot. However, the filing does not indicate that FBI agents have questioned voters about their ballot choices. Agents have reportedly contacted donors to one of the candidates as part of the federal investigation into potential deception surrounding the election.
The concerns were raised in a reply memorandum in the federal government's lawsuit against Alaska over its handling of the Senate election. The Justice Department (DOJ) has sued to block certification of the result if Dan S. Sullivan loses and votes for Daniel J.
Sullivan Jr. were enough to cost him victory. The DOJ is seeking an investigation into whether those voters had intended to back the incumbent. However, Senator Sullivan has told Jake Tapper on CNN that he would "accept the election results." Newsweek contacted the FBI, DOJ, the relevant campaigns, and the U.S Attorney’s Office for the district of Alaska via email, and the Alaska Governor’s office via online form on Sunday for comment.
The filing, submitted by attorneys for Risé Roy, Jan Jakub Grzeda, the League of Women Voters of Alaska and Common Cause, focused on remarks made by Alaska U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman during an October 30 press conference. According to the filing, Heyman suggested that law enforcement agents could question voters about who they actually intended to support.
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