The Justice Department pledged no FBI agents will monitor polling places during midterm elections
The Justice Department told a court that FBI agents and Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees will not serve as monitors in the midterm elections. In a declaration filed in a lawsuit brought by the NAACP, the department said monitors would observe polling places and take notes, not act as law enforcement. The NAACP argued the plans amounted to voter intimidation.
More context
The Justice Department told a federal court late Wednesday that neither the FBI nor Immigration and Customs Enforcement would provide personnel to monitor polling places during the midterm elections. The commitment appeared in an Oct. 28 declaration filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in a lawsuit brought by the NAACP. The group sued to bar prosecutors and other law enforcement personnel from serving as monitors, arguing the Trump administration’s plans amounted to voter intimidation. The department said it was not using sworn law enforcement officers with arrest powers as monitors in a law-enforcement capacity. According to the filing, monitors will observe polling places and take notes, will be prohibited from carrying firearms, and have been trained not to interfere with voting and to follow state and local rules.
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Reporting
- Newsweek — DOJ Says It Won’t Deploy FBI, ICE Agents as Poll Monitors - Newsweek
- The Hill — FBI, ICE won’t contribute to poll monitoring: Justice Department
- UA News — US Justice Department will not involve FBI and ICE in election monitoring — The Hill
- Reuters — US Justice Department says FBI, ICE agents will not serve as poll monitors in midterms
- The Times of India — US midterms: FBI, ICE agents will not serve as election monitors, DOJ says - The Times of India
- The Independent — Fears of voter intimidation as Trump's DOJ confirms plan to send DEA, ATF and prison guards to the polls
- Bloomberg Law — DOJ Says FBI, ICE Agents Won’t Be Stationed at Polls Next Week
Verifier’s note
Newsweek, The Hill, Reuters, The Independent, and Bloomberg Law report that DOJ said FBI and ICE personnel would not serve as poll monitors in the midterms; UA.News and Times of India carry derivative reports. The reports are all dated October 29, 2026, and are consistent with the proposed event.