Alaska high court lets man serving a 20-year sentence remain in US House race

JUNEAU, Alaska — The Alaska Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a man currently serving a 20-year prison sentence can remain on the November ballot in the race for a seat in the state House of Representatives.

In a summary order, a divided court upheld the verdict a ruling by a lower court in a case brought by the Alaska Democratic Party; Judge Susan Carney dissented. A full opinion explaining the reasoning will be released later.

Democrats have filed a lawsuit against New Jersey election officials seeking to remove Eric Hafner from the ballot. Hafner pleaded guilty in 2022 to making threats against police officers, judges and others.

Hafner, who has no apparent ties to Alaska, is running as a Democrat in a closely watched race with Democratic U.S. Representative Mary Peltola and Republican Nick Begich. Hafner’s candidacy statement listed a federal prison in New York as his mailing address.

Under Alaska’s open primary system, voters are asked to choose one candidate per race, with the four candidates with the most votes advancing to the general election. Hafner finished sixth in the primary, but was placed on the general election ballot after Republicans Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom and Matthew Salisbury, who finished third and a distant fourth, withdrew.

John Wayne Howe of the Alaskan Independence Party also qualified.

Lawyers for Alaska Democrats argued that the law did not contain a provision allowing someone who finished in sixth place to advance to the next round, while lawyers for the state said that interpretation was too narrow.