Colorado's Griswold says "Immigration officials must not be used to intimidate voters"
Colorado Secretary of State
“Trump and his administration have used ICE to terrorize and intimidate Americans. Immigration officials must not be used to intimidate voters … We are calling on the nominated Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin to confirm in writing that there will not be an ICE presence near voting locations in the 2026 election cycle.”
Source and context
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)Official statement
About this source
Release publishing the May 11 reply from ICE's Todd Lyons. It says the reply was dated more than a month after the April 8 response deadline the secretaries requested, quotes Griswold's reaction, and links both letters.
Before the quotation
Eight other secretaries of state signed the letter to then-nominee Markwayne Mullin. The release said it followed comments by former Secretary Kristi Noem and DHS staff.
After the quotation
On May 27, Griswold said she agreed there is no reason for ICE personnel to be deployed to polling places but remained concerned that agency leadership cannot provide an unequivocal answer.
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. Griswold said immigration officials must not be used to intimidate voters and asked for written confirmation of no ICE presence near voting locations, which expressly rejects the practice. She set no condition, so mixed or conditional does not fit.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Markwayne Mullin
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.
More from this case
Read the full case“We are taking strong, joint legal action to block Donald Trump’s threats to deploy federal agents, including ICE and FBI agents, to polling places this November. … Federal law explicitly forbids voter intimidation and stationing armed federal agents at polling places.”Read statement
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
“I have not seen any operational plans or any discussions on any immigration enforcement operation at polling places. This is another fear tactic. This is another attack on ICE and this administration. … I want to put that to bed. There is no plan to sweep polling places looking for illegal aliens.”Read statement