US President Donald Trump.
The US military has also said it has no plans to send federal military personnel or federalised National Guard members to polling places during the 2026 elections. The lawsuit, led by the NAACP, was filed Friday in a US federal court and argues that the administration’s stated possibility of deploying federal officers at polling locations could amount to voter intimidation, The Guardian reported.
Such actions could discourage people from voting, particularly Black, Latino and Asian voters, naturalised citizens and members of mixed-status families, according to the complaint. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said earlier this month that ICE would not patrol polling sites but could be present if there was a threat at a location or if agents were serving a warrant. The administration has previously said that ICE does not plan operations targeting polling locations.
A coalition of civil rights groups has sued the Trump administration, seeking to prevent US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and other federal law-enforcement officers from being deployed at polling sites during the November midterm elections. The groups cited comments by senior Trump administration officials about the possible presence of federal agents at polling locations. So far, the Trump administration has not deployed armed federal officers or military personnel at polling locations for the upcoming midterm elections.
However, President Donald Trump has previously declined to rule out sending ICE officers or National Guard personnel to polling locations during the midterms, contributing to concerns among voting-rights groups.