DHS official Honey tells state election officials "There will be no ICE presence at polling locations for this election"
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Election Integrity
“Any suggestion that ICE is going to be present at polling places is simply disinformation … There will be no ICE presence at polling locations for this election.”
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Votebeat's report, citing five people who listened to the call, of remarks by DHS deputy assistant secretary Heather Honey to state election officials in a virtual meeting organized by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. DHS did not immediately respond to Votebeat's request for comment. The words are the participants' account; we did not locate a recording or transcript.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Official statement
About this source
Release announcing a letter from nine secretaries of state to then-nominee Markwayne Mullin. It lists the signatories, quotes Griswold, and quotes remarks by DHS official Heather Honey on Feb. 25 and then-Secretary Kristi Noem on March 3.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The virtual meeting between federal agencies and state election officials was organized by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
After the quotation
Colorado's Secretary of State quoted Honey in a March 9 news release, in a slightly shorter form, and DHS did not immediately respond to Votebeat's request for comment.
How this statement is classified
Case context: Should ICE and other armed federal agents be allowed at or near polling places in the 2026 election?
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The fixed reference point is the administration's stated or threatened use of ICE at or near polling places. Honey said that any suggestion of an ICE presence at polling places is disinformation and that there will be none, which denies the alleged plan. She attached no condition, so mixed or conditional does not fit.
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Should ICE and other armed federal agents be allowed at or near polling places in the 2026 election?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
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NAACP
“We reject this administration’s attempt to desecrate our polling sites by converting them into militarized zones through the unlawful deployment of ICE or any other federal agent … The Voting Rights Act prohibits intimidation tactics that stand to deny and deter voters from exercising their voice and their rights.”Read statement
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