Politics

Justice Department says no FBI or ICE staff will serve as midterm poll monitors

Washington, D.C. • October 29, 2026 • By Press Pass USA

Editorial illustration: voters entering an American polling place with an observer holding a notebook standing aside

Editorial illustration — Press Pass USA

The Justice Department said late on Wednesday that agents and employees from the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement will not serve as monitors during the midterm elections, in a court filing in a federal case brought by the civil rights organization NAACP.

The filing said election monitors will not act as law enforcement personnel while monitoring. The monitors will mainly observe polling places and take notes, and will be prohibited from carrying firearms. The department said monitors have been trained not to interfere in voting and to follow state and local rules, consistent with past practice.

While employees from the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Drug Enforcement Administration will serve as monitors, the filing said no FBI or ICE employees will serve in that role.

The filing came after the NAACP sued to bar prosecutors and other law enforcement personnel from serving as monitors, arguing the administration's plans amount to voter intimidation. The administration has pressed states for voter-registration data and argued stricter measures are needed to ensure public confidence in the vote.

Sources: Reuters (Oct 28, 2026); U.S. Department of Justice court filing.