The Justice Department’s bid to preemptively block the results of Alaska’s Senate race is not an attempt to give US President Donald Trump control of state elections, US Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Sunday.
Blanche’s agency on Friday sued to stop Alaska from certifying the results of its US Senate race if the Republican incumbent candidate loses narrowly.
But the Justice Department is not setting the stage for overturning an election result if it’s unfavorable to Trump, Blanche said.
“President Trump is not trying to take over a state election in any way, shape, or form,” Blanche told CNN’s “State of the Union” program. “We’re not laying any groundwork for the president to do that.”
Election officials around the country have told Reuters they are preparing for potential federal interference in the November 3 midterm elections that will decide control of the US Congress, including legal challenges and disputes over voting that could disrupt certification of the results.
In addition to the Alaska lawsuit, the Trump administration has taken other vote-related actions against states, including a lawsuit to stop California from counting certain mail-in ballots and a mostly unsuccessful attempt to force 30 states and the District of Columbia to provide complete voter rolls.
