Alaska's Peltola Denies Ballot-Stacking Role as Slur Allegation Surfaces Before Tuesday Vote

Mary Peltola, the Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in Alaska, denied again at a Friday rally any involvement in an alleged ballot-stacking scheme reported to involve her campaign, days before Alaskans vote Tuesday on whether to scrap the state's ranked choice ballot. The Hill reported that she did not mention the ongoing investigations, including a federal probe. Separately, former staffers allege Peltola, 53, used the n-word after an October 2024 dinner honoring nearly 4,000 black soldiers, when she was a U.S. Representative. An unnamed former staffer told Alaska Landmine she used the slur about Ed Wesley, a black Army veteran and former Anchorage NAACP president who promoted the dinner, and repeatedly called him a scammer. FEC records show her campaign spent $8,000 on tables after Wesley reportedly assured her they would be filled. Her campaign denied the claim, calling it a smear by a fired, disgruntled former staffer, and a spokesperson said she would never use the word. Peltola is challenging Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan in a race that could determine the balance of power in Congress.

The New York Times, on the left, frames the story around the ranked choice measure, asking whether Peltola's campaign sealed its fate and suggesting it may have bolstered critics, alongside the contested Senate and governor's races. The excerpt does not mention the slur allegation. The New York Post, on the right, leads with that allegation, labels Peltola as backed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the "Squad," and adds the $8,000 FEC detail, the unnamed staffer's account, earlier accusations of angry outbursts, other offensive terms and shoving an employee, plus the campaign's denial. It does not mention ranked choice in the excerpt. Both sides center on controversy around Peltola's campaign but pick different controversies. The Hill is distinct, centering her denial of ballot-stacking and her silence on the federal probe.