Staff Reports
Attorney General Todd Blanche did something a lot of officials won’t do: he said out loud what many of us suspected. In a fiery Fox News interview, Blanche accused Alaska Democrats of trying to game the system and bluntly declared, “They are cheating! Let’s call it what it is, they are cheating.” That line didn’t come from a political rally — it came from the nation’s top lawyer defending a Department of Justice lawsuit that could block certification of the Alaska Senate result under a very specific scenario.
Blanche Calls Out ‘Cheating’ on National TV
The Attorney General’s words landed on national TV less than a week before the midterms, and they weren’t casual rhetoric. Blanche was defending a DOJ complaint that asks a federal court to pause Alaska’s certification if a narrow vote-count condition is met — namely, if votes for a second candidate named Daniel J. Sullivan would have moved to Senator Dan Sullivan under ranked‑choice tabulation and changed the outcome. The DOJ’s move is unusual, bold, and exactly the kind of straight-speaking action Blanche deserved credit for on the air.
What the DOJ Lawsuit Actually Alleges
The complaint points to a troubling fact: Alaska’s own Division of Elections previously flagged one Daniel J. Sullivan’s filings as likely meant to “confuse or mislead” voters. The New York Times reported that operatives connected to the Democratic nominee even ran what they called a “ballot composition” effort — instructions allegedly went out to “find as many people named Dan Sullivan in Alaska as you can.” The DOJ is asking the court to investigate whether votes were intentionally steered away from Senator Sullivan and to condition certification on that inquiry if the narrow math would have flipped the result.
Why This Is About More Than One Race
Call it what you will — savvy campaign strategy or outright cheating — the point is that deliberately stacking a ballot to exploit a ranked‑choice system erodes trust. Yes, federal suits to block state certification are rare and legally novel. Yes, Alaska officials and the state Department of Law are moving to dismiss the case. But when the evidence suggests voter confusion was manufactured, a rubber stamp won’t cut it. President Trump has urged action, and Attorney General Blanche put a spotlight where it belongs: on protecting the integrity of the vote, not protecting a playbook that treats democracy like a technicality.
What Comes Next — And What We Should Demand
Judge Sharon L. Gleason will decide whether this lawsuit moves forward on an expedited schedule. That’s the right pace. If the court finds the facts merit further review, evidence should be examined quickly and transparently. If the court dismisses the complaint, Alaska voters deserve a clear explanation for why alleged ballot‑stacking was allowed to stand. Either way, campaigns and operatives should get the message: gaming ballots is a gamble with our republic, and there’s a growing willingness in Washington to call it out. If Democrats think election rules are a new kind of carnival game, Attorney General Blanche just threw the whistle — and that whistle is long overdue.
