Election Law Scholar Warns Federal Probe May Threaten Free Speech in Alaska Senate Race
Professor Rick Hasen says a federal grand-jury investigation into a candidate sharing a name with Alaska’s incumbent raises serious First Amendment issues.
Election-law expert Rick Hasen responded to one outlet's story about a federal grand-jury investigation into Dan J. Sullivan, a former teacher who recently filed as a Republican in Alaska. Prosecutors are examining whether his candidacy was designed to mislead voters and benefit Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola by drawing votes away from incumbent Dan S. Sullivan. The probe reportedly targets possible wire-fraud offenses and a conspiracy that might violate the Ku Klux Klan Act, a civil-rights statute.
Hasen contends that charging a candidate for having “impure” motives would likely run afoul of the First Amendment and could open the door to criminalizing routine political tactics. He warns that such a precedent might allow authorities to prosecute parties for supporting third-party or spoiler candidates, highlighting a clash between election-integrity enforcement and constitutional free-speech rights.
Why it matters
It raises the question of whether election officials can criminalize a candidate’s motives without infringing on free speech.
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