Trump Makes Wild Election Claim as Miller Takes the Reins
Apparently, voting for someone else still counts as voting Republican.
Donald Trump has declared victory in an election for which the results are not yet known, basing his claim on his own version of the vote count.
In a rather bold post on the platform “Truth Social” on Saturday afternoon, the former president—aged 80—asserted that Republican Senator Dan Sullivan was “way ahead” in the Alaska Senate race, even though Democrat Mary Peltola is currently leading in the vote count.
What is Trump’s reasoning? He believes that the votes cast for two other candidates should simply be added to Sullivan’s total.
Trump stated: “Daniel Sullivan is leading substantially in the Alaska Senatorial Race. When you add Daniel (3,600, 1.68%) into Dan, and Gerald Heikes (4,846, 2.27%), Senator Dan Sullivan is up by thousands of Votes,”
Mary Peltola is currently in the lead with 48.17% of the vote, while Sullivan—who has Trump’s endorsement—trails by fewer than 700 votes, with 47.88%.
As of now, only 75% of the ballots have been counted. Under Alaska’s “ranked-choice voting” system, if no candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, the candidates with the fewest votes are eliminated, and their votes are redistributed based on the subsequent preferences expressed by the voters.
Trump’s calculations overlook this fundamental distinction: votes are not automatically transferred to whichever candidate the former president thinks should receive them; in reality, some voters’ ballots might not end up being cast for either of the two major-party candidates.
The outcome of the race may not be known until November 18, the date set in Alaska for the tabulation of votes under the ranked-choice voting system.
However, this timeline seems far too distant for Trump, who—well before Election Day—was already heavily emphasizing allegations of “voter fraud” in Alaska.
It is worth noting that another individual, also named “Dan Sullivan,” participated in both the primary and general elections; his candidacy appears to have contributed to a splitting of the vote. Although his candidacy was challenged through multiple legal avenues, courts and election authorities consistently upheld his inclusion on the ballot.
Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. currently sits in fourth place with just 1.68% of the vote, trailing far behind Dan S. Sullivan, who appears on the ballot as the incumbent Republican candidate.
Trump’s statement comes just 24 hours after the announcement that Stephen Miller would serve as White House Chief of Staff. Miller himself weighed in on the situation in Alaska, describing it as “one of the most egregious attacks on the integrity of American elections ever seen.”
Miller—who was questioned by the congressional committee investigating the January 6 Capitol attack regarding his role in promoting the “Stop the Steal” movement—had helped draft part of the speech Trump delivered at the “Ellipse” before rioters stormed the Capitol.
Last month, Miller also argued on the platform “X” that this “Sullivan vs. Sullivan” affair “reveals total contempt for the voters,” while placing the blame on Democrats.
Four days after Miller’s post, The New York Times reported allegations that Peltola’s campaign team may have coordinated with Daniel J. Sullivan to get him on the ballot.
Peltola’s campaign has denied these allegations.
In his post on Saturday, Trump also claimed—without providing evidence—that the candidacy of the independent, “Hikes,” was fraudulent, and declared that the race was “over.”
“I don’t know what takes so long to announce his win. This should be immediate! Anyone voting for Daniel J. Sullivan, Jr., a man who tried to change his middle initial, but was unable to get it done in time, and who was otherwise nonpolitical – Never even voted – is a vote for Senator Dan Sullivan. The Alaska Race is OVER. Dan Sullivan WON, BY A LOT!”
It wasn’t Trump’s first such demand this week as he licks his wounds following decisive Democratic victories in the midterms.
On Thursday, Trump expressed similar discontent on the platform “Truth Social,” asserting that the only solution was to reallocate the votes received by the independent candidate to Senator Sullivan.
“There is no other fair solution!” he opined.
