{"id":302320,"date":"2026-10-08T12:44:09","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T12:44:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/302320\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T12:44:09","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T12:44:09","slug":"pennsylvania-voting-advocates-preparing-for-ice-to-disrupt-2026-election","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/302320\/","title":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania voting advocates preparing for ICE to disrupt 2026 election"},"content":{"rendered":"

Votebeat is a nonprofit news organization reporting on voting access and election administration across the U.S. Sign up for our free weekly newsletter<\/a> to get the latest.<\/p>\n

As the 2026 midterms near, one question repeatedly comes up in discussions about potential disruptions to election administration.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018What if ICE shows up?\u2019 That\u2019s what I\u2019m hearing,\u201d Olivia Hale, the election director in San Joaquin County, California, said on a recent call sponsored by the Partnership for Large Election Jurisdictions.<\/p>\n

Federal law<\/a> already prohibits stationing \u201ctroops or armed men at any place where a general or special election is held,\u201d along with other voting protections. But Hale isn\u2019t the only one raising concerns. In Pennsylvania, state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, D-Philadelphia, says he\u2019s trying to respond by clarifying state law.<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania\u2019s election code bars police from being within 100 feet of polling places. Kenyatta has introduced a bill that would expand the language to include federal agents as well.<\/p>\n

Currently, the law says<\/a> \u201cno police officer \u2026 shall be within one hundred feet of a polling place\u201d on Election Day. Kenyatta\u2019s proposal<\/a> would replace \u201cpolice officer\u201d with the more expansive term \u201claw enforcement officer.\u201d<\/p>\n

The prospect of passing any election legislation before the November election is slim \u2014 as it has yet to receive a vote in the state House \u2014 but Kenyatta says it is important to do so.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have become so accustomed to the president blatantly lying about the election, threatening people, using the court process and administrative powers granted to him to try to intimidate voters,\u201d he said. \u201cSo there is in my view a real necessity to clarify the law.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump\u2019s administration hasn\u2019t articulated any specific plans to send ICE to the polls this year.<\/p>\n

But the administration\u2019s messaging has been inconsistent on this issue. In February, in response to former Trump adviser Steve Bannon\u2019s comment<\/a> that \u201cwe\u2019re going to have ICE surround the polls,\u201d former White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said she \u201ccan\u2019t guarantee\u201d<\/a> there wouldn\u2019t be ICE agents around the polls in November.<\/p>\n

Later that month, however, Heather Honey, a Department of Homeland Security official, told a group of state election officials<\/a> that any such suggestion was \u201cdisinformation\u201d and that \u201cthere will be no ICE presence at polling locations for this election.\u201d<\/p>\n

In July, Attorney General Todd Blanche didn\u2019t rule out the possibility<\/a>. In September the Department of Homeland Security said<\/a> it was not \u201cplanning\u201d ICE operations targeting polling places but might conduct \u201ctargeted enforcement\u201d actions if there is a public safety threat at a polling location.<\/p>\n

In response to a request for comment, a spokesperson for the department reiterated it is not planning any operations targeting polling places. They referred Votebeat and Spotlight PA to remarks from Secretary Markwayne Mullin\u2019s confirmation hearing in March.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t understand what the concern is about enforcement of immigration at polling places anyways, because honestly if you\u2019re not a citizen, you shouldn\u2019t be voting anyways, so technically there shouldn\u2019t be illegals at the polling spot,\u201d he said. \u201cThe only reason why my officers would be there is if there was a specific threat for them to be there, not for intimidation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concern that ICE may come to polling places prompted a coalition of civil rights groups and the City of Denver to sue the Trump administration last month<\/a> to stop any such action. A similar but separate lawsuit <\/a>was also filed recently by the NAACP and a coalition of civil rights groups and unions.<\/p>\n

Voting rights groups are worried in Pennsylvania as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are some concerns that immigrant communities or underserved communities have that there could be ICE at the polls,\u201d said Kadida Kenner, CEO of the New Pennsylvania Project. \u201cI think there has been so much chaos at this moment \u2026 that I think all of us want to be clear on what the rules are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine Rivera, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Immigrant Coalition, said that increased immigration enforcement under the Trump administration has had a chilling effect on immigrants of all statuses in all aspects of life, not just elections. One in 12 people living in Pennsylvania is an immigrant, Rivera said, and 53% of them are naturalized citizens.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor all of us in the immigrant rights space, we know that [having ICE at the polls] is a possibility on the table,\u201d she said, although she stressed that it\u2019s not guaranteed either. \u201cIt\u2019s better to be safe than sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said her coalition is urging eligible immigrant voters to vote by mail \u201cto make sure the vote gets out, but also to keep people safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jonathan Diaz, the director of voting advocacy and partnerships at the Campaign Legal Center, noted that federal law provides protections beyond the ban on armed troops at polling places.<\/p>\n

\u201cSimilar federal statutes prevent civilian federal employees from using their official position to influence federal elections,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are also federal statutes that make it a crime to intimidate or attempt to intimidate voters in federal elections.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deborah Hinchey, the Pennsylvania state director for All Voting is Local, said efforts by \u201cbad faith actors\u201d to discourage in-person voting have not been successful. Her impression is that voters still understand voting is safe and important, particularly in Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n

Polls support that contention. A survey this month from Harvard University\u2019s Shorenstein Center<\/a> found that only 6% of people selected immigration enforcement at the polls as their biggest concern about the election, though Democrats were the most concerned.<\/p>\n

But, Hinchey said, Kenyatta\u2019s bill is still worth considering.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do think the concern that law enforcement could be at the polling locations is something that we should address legislatively if possible,\u201d she said. \u201cI think the current political moment we are in somewhat requires us to be more prescriptive and be more descriptive about what that means.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kenyatta said his bill is intended to block all law enforcement officers, including ICE agents, and prevent any issues their presence at the polls might cause. He pointed to Wyoming\u2019s Republican governor recently complaining<\/a> about Department of Justice election monitors being \u201ca bit aggressive\u201d during the state\u2019s August primary election. (However, it\u2019s unclear whether the proposed law would apply to those monitors, who have monitored state elections for years without incident<\/a> and are not generally considered law enforcement.)<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we must do, in my view, is clarify that in no uncertain terms, that even though the language speaks broadly about law enforcement, about police, we also meant you,\u201d he said. \u201cSometimes even when we think the law is pretty clear, you have people who don\u2019t read it with the same clarity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Votebeat Arizona reporter Sasha Hupka contributed reporting.<\/p>\n

Carter Walker is a reporter for Votebeat in partnership with Spotlight PA. Contact Carter at cwalker@votebeat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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