Democratic groups filed a federal lawsuit late Wednesday to prevent the Trump administration from sending armed federal agents to polling places, drop boxes, or other voting sites during the midterms. The suit argues such deployments would amount to illegal voter intimidation.
The plaintiffs — the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Democratic Governors Association, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries — cite statements from Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin that ICE agents could make arrests at polling places, Attorney General Todd Blanche’s endorsements of law enforcement near voting sites, and FBI Director Kash Patel’s recent testimony.
They seek a court order barring armed officers from the vicinity of open polling places from early voting through post-election ballot curing, pointing to a federal statute that prohibits sending armed federal agents or troops to polls except when such force is necessary to repel armed enemies of the United States, plus Voting Rights Act protections against intimidation.
DHS has specifically said that “ICE is not planning operations targeting polling locations.” The department said ICE conducts intelligence-driven, targeted enforcement and that if an active public safety threat endangered a polling location, an individual could be arrested there as part of that targeted enforcement action. Officers could be positioned to rapidly respond to an incident if necessary
In a related FOIA case, Democrats flagged a 12-page DHS document titled “Checklist for Law Enforcement Voter Integrity 9.15.25 – FINAL DRAFT — BSI suggestions.docx.” The document appears to have existed since at least last year. DHS has withheld the document from release in response to the DNC’s FOIA request since July. In a status report, the department said the delay resulted from an administrative error: the 12-page record was processed in July 2026 and flagged as requiring legal consultation with the Justice Department, but that consultation request was never sent.
DHS sent a belated consultation request to DOJ on September 16 and apologized to the court for the omissions and resulting delay. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell ordered DHS on Monday to produce the document by the end of the week and directed the Justice Department to complete its review by Thursday.
