Second registered Republican Dan Sullivan is not the party nominee
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit in Alaska’s U.S. Senate race on Oct. 23 and sought a federal judge’s intervention, with less than two weeks to go in the election. Elving said the request was to block certification of the results if Trump’s preferred candidate did not win.
Alaska’s ranked-choice system sends several top finishers from the primary to the November ballot regardless of party. Incumbent Senator Dan Sullivan is on the ballot as a Republican. A second candidate with the same first and last name but a different middle initial also received enough primary votes for the fall ballot. That candidate is a registered Republican but is not the Republican Party’s official nominee.
Elving said the second candidate’s participation was legal in Alaska but angered Trump. Trump then sent the Justice Department to sue to block certification if his preferred candidate did not win.
The report’s other major focus was Ohio’s gubernatorial race. Ramaswamy released an attack ad against Democratic opponent Amy Acton featuring her estranged mother, who calls her daughter a liar and urges Ohioans not to vote for her. Ramaswamy has refused to withdraw the spot, even as NPR said much of the relevant context was missing. NPR warned listeners that the discussion would include allegations of sexual abuse.
Legal documents from nearly 50 years ago show Acton, then 12, and her younger brother were removed from their mother’s home following their stepfather’s arrest. He was charged with sexual conduct with a minor and fled the state with their mother. He died without facing trial. Acton alleges that her stepfather raped her and that she had been sexually abused beginning when she was 9.
The ad drew condemnation, including from Ohio’s Republican governor, while Ramaswamy continued to defend it. Trump told Ramaswamy to keep the ad running. Elving said Vice President JD Vance, a Ramaswamy backer, defended the advertisement and condemned Republicans who criticized it, calling them whiners.
Elving said Ramaswamy’s decision was not surprising because the campaign had already risked its statewide race and the tens of millions of dollars invested by Elon Musk and others. Because the advertising had divided Republicans in Ohio and nationally, he said it was not surprising that Ramaswamy would defend it.
Elving said the advertisement had dominated the conversation in Ohio and could blow back on Republican Senator Jon Husted, who is in a tight reelection race against former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown. Elving also said controversies like this tend to be dispiriting and may discourage people who do not automatically turn out in midterms.
Elving linked the Alaska lawsuit to broader concern about Trump’s treatment of Justice Department personnel. He said Trump became angry during his first term when Justice Department officials pushed back on his orders or followed existing law and prior policy. Trump later tried to remove those officials and replace them with lawyers who would do what he wanted, Elving said.
Elving closed by saying many people fear what might be next if Trump is displeased with election results around the country 10 days from now.