United States Attorney General Todd Blanche has defended the Department of Justice’s decision to sue to prevent the certification of a Republican loss in Alaska’s tight Senate race. On Sunday, Blanche did a tour of the morning political shows in the US, making stops at CNN’s State of the Union TV programme and CBS’s Face the Nation. In each appearance, he faced pointed questions about the legality of the Justice Department’s efforts, responding, in some cases, with open frustration.
He proceeded to accuse one of the candidates in the Senate race of intentionally trying to confuse voters. Many have accused President Donald Trump’s administration of laying the groundwork to block a Democratic win in the race. Trump himself claimed to have authorised the lawsuit.
During the November 3 midterm elections, citizens in Alaska will vote in one of the country’s closest Senate races, which will help decide whether Republicans maintain their majority in the chamber. Senator Dan S Sullivan, the Republican incumbent, is seeking to defend his seat in the US Senate. But he faces fierce competition from former US Representative Mary Peltola, a Democrat.
Also in the running is Dan J Sullivan, a former Forest Service employee. The second Sullivan’s decision to run has raised concerns that he is a spoiler candidate, whose presence on the ballot is designed to draw votes away from the incumbent. But the Forest Service worker has denied any such intent.
Such allegations, he said, are “entirely false”. I made the decision to formally run for the United States Senate in the upcoming primary election because Senator Sullivan has routinely failed the people of Alaska, and they deserve a better representative. It is my right to do so.” Four candidates advanced to the final round of voting after Alaska’s August primaries.
They included Peltola and both Sullivans. The two men are running as Republicans. The Justice Department has argued that its lawsuit – filed less than two weeks before the midterm elections – is necessary “to protect the integrity” of the election.
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