Denver, Colorado — The city of Denver and several advocacy groups sued the Trump administration Thursday, asking a federal court to block armed immigration agents from conducting enforcement at polling places during the November midterms.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., names Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and acting ICE Director David Venturella. Plaintiffs include Denver, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Common Cause and UnidosUS.
The administration has not announced a nationwide plan to station ICE agents at polling places. However, Mullin recently said agents could enter voting locations if there were a threat or if officers were serving a warrant on someone they had been tracking.
The lawsuit argues that even limited armed immigration enforcement near voting sites could intimidate voters and interfere with election administration. It cites incidents in Syracuse, New York, and San Antonio where immigration agents allegedly entered or gathered near polling locations.
Federal law places unusually strict limits on armed federal personnel around elections. Justice Department guidance states that 18 U.S.C. § 592 makes it a felony for federal officials to send “armed men” to the vicinity of open polling places, subject to narrow exceptions. DOJ guidance also says federal investigators generally should avoid actions that could interfere with voting.
The plaintiffs are seeking an injunction before early voting expands later this month.
DHS has said ICE will not patrol polling places generally, but maintains that agents may act in specific enforcement situations. The court will now have to determine how that position fits with longstanding federal protections surrounding voting locations.
Sources
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