Justice Department widens Alaska Senate probe with target letters

One briefed source says more than 100 subpoenas issued in inquiry

The Justice Department sent target letters to Democratic attorney Marc Elias and other people in an investigation into an Alaska Senate candidate who shares a name with Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan, two people familiar with the matter said Tuesday. Elias, a prominent Democratic attorney in the District of Columbia, has for years represented Democratic campaigns and the party itself in election-related challenges. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.

The letter to Elias and multiple similar letters issued in the matter marked an overt widening of the investigation into potential voter confusion in Alaska. The people familiar with the matter said the recipients may be targets of the criminal inquiry.

Under the Justice Department’s definition, a “target” is a person against whom the department has gathered substantial evidence linking the person to a possible crime and whom it regards as a potential defendant. The Justice Department sometimes sends such letters to people it sees as at legitimate risk of indictment, but receiving a target letter does not necessarily mean the person will be indicted.

The letters surfaced on Election Day in a race between two-term Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democratic former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. The contest was among a handful nationwide expected to determine control of the Senate.

Alaska U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman told reporters in Anchorage that the investigation had been ongoing for several months. Recent revelations from The New York Times that Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan, the candidate sharing the incumbent’s surname, resulted in a “significant surge of law enforcement assets to Alaska.”

One briefed source says more than 100 subpoenas have been issued as part of the inquiry.

The Justice Department generally does not require targets of its investigations to testify before a grand jury, in part because of constitutional protections against self-incrimination. The Trump administration has also repeatedly struggled to secure grand jury indictments in politically sensitive cases.

Elias responded in a Tuesday statement: “No one should be surprised that President Trump’s Department of Justice is targeting me and my law firm on Election Day. This administration has repeatedly weaponized the DOJ against the President’s political enemies despite zero evidence of wrongdoing, and we are the latest targets.”

Elias also said: “We will not be intimidated by a sham investigation. We are going to keep working around the clock to support our clients and make sure President Trump and his party enjoy a well-deserved beating at the ballot box.” Elias did not return messages seeking comment.

By Tuesday, the federal inquiry had produced target letters to Elias and others and a surge of law-enforcement assets in Alaska; one person briefed on the probe said more than 100 subpoenas had also been issued. The Justice Department treats recipients as potential defendants, but a target letter does not necessarily lead to an indictment.