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DHS Tells States ICE Won’t Be at Polling Places for 2026 Midterms

Many state election chiefs remain unconvinced, citing Heather Honey’s 2020 election‑denial ties and the absence of a public reaffirmation of state authority.

Overview

  • Homeland Security told secretaries of state that ICE agents will not be stationed at voting locations, a pledge multiple participants said Heather Honey delivered on a federal briefing call.
  • DHS added a narrow caveat that targeted enforcement could occur at a polling site only if an active public‑safety threat endangered that location.
  • Several Democrats, including Arizona’s Adrian Fontes and Maine’s Shenna Bellows, said the assurance did not ease concerns, while Kentucky Republican Michael Adams publicly noted the commitment.
  • Federal officials declined requests to issue a public statement affirming that states run elections, leaving election chiefs seeking clearer guarantees on constitutional roles.
  • Honey urged states to use DHS’s SAVE database to vet voter rolls, prompting questions about false positives and how long voter registration data would be retained, which went unanswered on the call.