The Trump administration wants to block the certification of the Senate race in Alaska if Republican Senator Dan Sullivan loses, arguing that another candidate with the same name may confuse voters.
In a federal lawsuit filed on Thursday, the justice department said the inclusion of another Dan Sullivan on the ballot could lead some to mistakenly cast their vote for the wrong candidate.
Polls suggest the race between Sen Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola is tight, with Peltola holding a narrow lead
The government is asking the judge to bar the state from certifying the election results if Sen Sullivan, loses by a margin less than the other Sullivan.
Previous efforts to remove the other Sullivan, a retired teacher, from the ballot have been rejected by the Alaska Supreme Court.
The Senator will be listed as the Republican incumbent, and Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system means that voters could select both if they are unsure at the ballot box.
