Trump claims Alaska voters need ‘190 IQ’ to understand their ballot as DOJ ratchets up case against the state

As his administration seeks to block a Democratic candidate from beating the state’s incumbent Republican in a race for U.S. Senate, President Donald Trump has claimed that most voters in Alaska don’t know what the word “incumbent” means.During an interview on Friday with Kansas City radio host Pete Mundo, Trump repeated allegations of voter fraud involving Democratic Senate nominee Mary Peltola. Peltola’s campaign allegedly helped recruit Daniel J. Sullivan to run against Republican Senator Daniel S. Sullivan in an effort to puzzle voters and siphon support from the incumbent, The New York Times reported this week. Peltola and her campaign have denied participating in the alleged effort. Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher, has said he entered the race of his own volition.The Department of Justice has sued to block certification of the election result if the incumbent loses by a margin attributable to voter confusion. Federal prosecutors have also opened up a criminal probe. On Friday, Trump railed against Alaska’s ballot, which lists “Sullivan, Daniel J. Jr.,” without a party affiliation, and “Sullivan, Dan S. (Registered Republican) Incumbent.”‘Nobody’s ever seen voter fraud like this…This is as bad — it’s the same thing, actually — but it’s as bad as what we went through in 2020,’ Trump said about his efforts to block Alaska ballots (Getty Images)“You need about a 190 IQ to figure out the ballot,” Trump told Mundo.“They put a ballot down where they’re talking about ‘incumbent’ Republican, and the other one. Most people don’t know in Alaska — and a lot of other states, too — what does incumbent mean? I don’t know what incumbent means,” he said.“I mean, you talk about voter fraud,” Trump continued. “Nobody’s ever seen voter fraud like this ... This is as bad — it’s the same thing, actually — but it’s as bad as what we went through in 2020 and what we always go through. Because, you know, the whole thing with — it’s such an important thing. We got rigged. We had a rigged election in 2020.”Despite Trump’s repeated claims, there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election, something even his own administration officials previously acknowledged.The president has also repeatedly called for Peltola and Daniel J. Sullivan to be criminally prosecuted.Peltola pushed back Friday as federal prosecutors expanded their investigation by issuing new grand jury subpoenas to interview donors to Daniel J. Sullivan’s campaign.“I am so deeply offended by these accusations about having any involvement with anyone else’s candidacy,” Peltola told supporters.“I'm not out soliciting more competition,” she added. “I do not need any help winning this race except by all of you in this room and the massive amounts of support we have across this state.”‘I am so deeply offended by these accusations about having any involvement with anyone else’s candidacy,’ Peltola said in response (AFP via Getty Images)Alaska officials also challenged the administration’s intervention.In a court filing this weekend seeking dismissal of the Justice Department’s lawsuit, they described the attempt to pre-empt election certification as “both disturbing and impossible.”“State law — as definitively interpreted by the Alaska Supreme Court — put Daniel J. on the ballot months ago,” the filing states.The Alaska Supreme Court rejected a similar effort this summer to remove Daniel J. Sullivan from the general election ballot.“State officials carefully designed the ballot to minimize voter confusion,” the filing continues. “The Court should immediately dismiss this lawsuit with prejudice and allow state officials to conduct the general election — including ballot counting and certification — free from unwarranted federal interference.”The Trump administration has also sought to intervene in other states ahead of the midterms, requesting that California set aside about 20,000 ballots it alleges may belong to non-citizen voters. A federal district judge and pane lof appeals court judges have rejected that request.With just days until Election Day, polls show Peltola and Senator Sullivan locked in a tight race. Democrats see Alaska as a potential pickup that could help them reclaim the Senate majority.