Alaska Democrat Mary Peltola and her family were hurt in a weekend car crash; an eight-stop Senate campaign tour is delayed days before the November 3 election
Mary Peltola, the Democratic candidate challenging Republican Senator Dan Sullivan in Alaska, and her family suffered minor injuries in a car crash on Saturday, forcing her campaign to reschedule events during the final week before the November 3 election.Peltola and her family were travelling to the Alaska Federation of Natives annual banquet when another vehicle struck the car transporting them, her campaign said in a statement on Sunday. Peltola required medical attention following the collision.“Mary and her family sustained minor injuries but are in good spirits,” Cheryl Bruce, Peltola’s campaign manager, said in a statement.“Unfortunately, per the advice of medical professionals, Mary’s upcoming events in Fairbanks and Bethel will be rescheduled for later in the week as she takes time to recover,” Bruce said.
Alaska Always Tour: An 8-stop campaign delayed
The crash delayed the start of Peltola’s “Alaska Always Tour”, an eight-stop campaign push planned for the final week before Election Day.Bruce said: “Mary is disappointed that the accident is delaying the start of her Alaska Always tour, and she is eager to get back on the campaign trail to speak directly with Alaskans about her plan to take on the rigged system and lower costs for working families.”According to the Anchorage Police Department, officers responded to a “multi-vehicle collision” at about 6.55pm on Saturday. Peltola’s family and an occupant of a second vehicle were taken to a local hospital with “non-life-threatening injuries”, authorities said. An occupant of a third vehicle refused medical transport.“The circumstances of the collision are under investigation,” the police department said in a statement.Peltola’s campaign said she would resume events on Tuesday, with a stop in Homer, Alaska.Peltola, an Alaska Native and former congresswoman, is challenging incumbent Republican Senator Dan Sullivan for Alaska’s only US Senate seat. She hopes to become the first Democrat in nearly two decades to represent the state in the Senate.
What is the row over the Alaska election?
The row over Alaska’s November 3 Senate election is about Donald Trump’s administration suing to block certification of the result if Republican Senator Dan Sullivan loses to Democrat Mary Peltola. The dispute centres on a second candidate with almost the same name as the incumbent. Trump has said he personally ordered the lawsuit.Incumbent Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan is running against Democrat Mary Peltola. A second candidate, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher from Petersburg, Alaska, is also running. He has no party affiliation listed on the ballot.Republicans argue that voters intending to support the incumbent could mistakenly vote for the other Sullivan, potentially benefiting Peltola. They have alleged that the second candidate’s presence on the ballot is a deliberate attempt to split Republican votes. Daniel J. Sullivan has denied that he is running to confuse voters or coordinating with Democrats.After efforts to remove the second Sullivan from the ballot failed in Alaska’s courts, the US Justice Department filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the state from certifying the Senate result if the incumbent loses, pending an investigation into possible voter confusion. Trump said he ordered the lawsuit.Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee have moved to intervene in the lawsuit and seek its dismissal. Her campaign has called the legal action an attempt to undermine voters’ choice.
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