The Trump administration said FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will not serve as federal election monitors during the 2026 general election, according to a Justice Department court filing Wednesday. The Department of Justice (DOJ) said in an October 28 declaration filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that it is not using sworn law enforcement officers with arrest powers as monitors in a law enforcement capacity.
Those serving as monitors are being instructed to observe polling places, take notes and, when appropriate, speak with willing voters outside after they have cast their ballots, according to a declaration filed in federal court in Washington. The declaration was submitted by Eric Neff, acting chief of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division Voting Section, in litigation brought by the NAACP over a Freedom of Information Act request. The Justice Department said its election monitors will follow practices used in past cycles, receive training on federal and local law, and be barred from carrying firearms or displaying identifying federal attire.
The filing says monitors will include employees from the Federal Bureau of Prisons, ATF and DEA, as well as one Customs and Border Protection (CBP) employee detailed to the department. While serving as monitors, they may perform only routine Civil Rights Division monitoring duties. Under the Trump administration's widespread deportation operation, the government has deployed resources from several federal agencies such as CBP, ATF and DEA to assist ICE with enacting its immigration enforcement agenda.
The filing comes amid growing scrutiny over the potential presence of federal law enforcement at polling places, following two incidents involving federal agents near early voting sites in Florida, one of which prompted a complaint to the FBI. Federal law generally prohibits deploying armed federal personnel to polling places, except to repel armed enemies of the United States. The Trump administration has consistently said it has no plans for federal agents to patrol polling sites, although President Donald Trump, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and FBI Director Kash Patel have declined to rule out their presence.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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