Justice Department spokesperson says the DOJ "has never said it would send federal law enforcement to polling locations"
Justice Department spokesperson Kiersten Pels, in a written statement
“The DOJ has never said it would send federal law enforcement to polling locations. Any suggestion otherwise is fearmongering.”
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
The Guardian's report on the September 18 lawsuit. It names the Justice Department spokesperson who gave the statement and reports that DHS denied ICE was planning operations targeting polling locations, that the FBI declined to comment and that ICE referred questions to DHS.
Reporting
About this source
Report on the September 18 lawsuit by a coalition of civil rights and labor groups. It carries the same Justice Department statement, given to States Newsroom, and a DHS statement that ICE was not planning operations targeting polling locations.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
A coalition of civil rights groups led by the NAACP had sued on September 18, alleging that threats to deploy law enforcement to polling sites violate the Voting Rights Act ban on voter intimidation.
After the quotation
The Guardian also reported that a DHS spokesperson denied that ICE was planning operations targeting polling locations, that the FBI declined to comment and that ICE referred questions to DHS.
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 reference point is the administration's stated or threatened use of ICE and other armed federal agents at or near polling places in the 2026 election. The Justice Department said it has never said it would send federal law enforcement to polling locations, which denies that it has stated or threatened such a deployment. Challenges the characterization loses because the statement goes beyond disputing a label and denies the statement of intent itself.
- Recorded on
- Published here
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“The last thing we want is for people to not have confidence in their elections and not show up. So … if that's something that they decide that they need to look at, then that's fine with me”Read statement
“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
“There is no reason for masked, armed agents to be at polling places like churches, schools, and libraries other than to intimidate eligible voters from making their voices heard. My bill will stop the President from sending armed troops to our local polling places and make sure you can access the ballot box and have your voice heard.”Read statement