Mary Peltola campaign sues Alaska over rejected absentee ballots

The campaign of Democrat Mary Peltola has filed a lawsuit against Alaska election officials seeking immediate access to records regarding rejected absentee ballots. The legal action comes as the U.S. Senate race between Peltola and Republican Senator Dan Sullivan remains extremely close, with a margin of approximately 600 votes.

Peltola’s campaign argues that under Alaska’s Public Records Act, they require the names of voters whose ballots were rejected and the specific reasons for those rejections. The campaign maintains that this information is necessary to determine if lawful ballots were improperly excluded and to allow them to contact affected voters.

Alaska officials have denied immediate access, stating that the records are preliminary and have historically been treated as confidential while ballot processing continues. State officials argue that releasing the data now could burden election workers and interfere with the ongoing counting process. Alaska continues to accept absentee ballots from remote communities through November 18.