Lawsuit seeks to block deployment of ICE, federal agents to polling sites
A coalition of advocacy groups and a Democratic-led city filed a preemptive lawsuit seeking to block the Trump administration from deploying armed ICE agents to polling sites ahead of the midterm elections.
Updated on: September 10, 2026 / 9:04 AM EDT / CBS News
The lawsuit asks the federal district court in Washington, D.C., to declare unlawful any plans to have armed agents at polling places and to prohibit federal officers from carrying weapons near voting locations or other sites where votes are collected.
"The specter of armed officers at polling places threatens the freedom of this upcoming election," the lawsuit read. "It places voters in fear that they will be confronted by armed federal law enforcement if they choose to cast a ballot."
The lawsuit specifically named the Department of Homeland Security and ICE as defendants, as well as their respective leaders, Markwayne Mullin and David Venturella. It was filed by the liberal-leaning legal group Democracy Forward, on behalf of the League of United Latin American Citizens, Common Cause, UnidosUS and the city of Denver.
The suit cited a provision of federal law that makes it a crime for officials to oversee or order the deployment of "any troops or armed men" to "any place where a general or special election is held," unless such a deployment is needed to repel "armed enemies of the United States."