The Alaska delegation sign is seen at the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 19, 2024, in Chicago. The speaker on the screen is Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. (Photo by Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom)
The Alaska Democratic Party sued the Alaska Division of Elections on Wednesday , seeking a state court injunction that would remove Eric Hafner from the state’s U.S. House election ballots.
Hafner, running as a Democrat, was the sixth-place finisher in the state’s August primary election but made it into the state’s “final four” November election after two higher-finishing Republicans withdrew.
Hafner has never lived in Alaska and is in federal prison in New York state, serving a 20-year sentence after threatening public officials in New Jersey.
“This is about someone who is incarcerated, an unqualified candidate that shouldn’t have been moved onto the ballot,” said Lindsay Kavanaugh, executive director of the Alaska Democratic Party.
Patty Sullivan, a spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Law, said by email that “Law is reviewing the complaint and will respond on behalf of the Division of Elections, which followed Alaska law and the U.S. Constitution when it put Mr. Hafner on the general election ballot.”