Arlington County, Virginia, went to federal court on Tuesday, Oct. 20. It asked a judge to keep armed federal immigration officers and FBI agents away from its polling places, early voting sites, ballot drop boxes and curbside voting locations 14. The county filed the case in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. It is suing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and challenging policies at both DHS and the Justice Department 1.
Time is short. Early voting is already underway in Virginia, and Election Day is Nov. 3 3. Maureen Coffey, vice chair of the county board, said officials hope for a quick ruling. She also said the county has not received any specific complaints so far, but that "we can't wait until voters are intimidated" 3.
These statements are a clear attempt to stoke fear and undermine confidence in our elections.
What the county is asking the court to do
The county wants the court to strike down the policies. It also wants an order barring armed federal agents at or near polling places, early voting sites and ballot drop-off locations, except where federal law expressly allows it 1.
The case rests on a federal law from 1865 3. That law bars federal officials from bringing troops or armed men to places where an election is held, unless they are needed to repel armed enemies of the United States 29. A federal official who breaks it can be fined, sent to prison for up to five years, and barred from holding any federal office 9.
The suit makes several other claims. It says the policies break the Administrative Procedure Act, the law that sets the rules for how federal agencies make decisions. It also says they go beyond the agencies' legal authority and intrude on the constitutional power of state and local governments to run elections 1. It includes a claim under the Tenth Amendment, which reserves powers to the states 4.
The receipts: what Mullin and Patel said
The county points to public statements made in September by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and FBI Director Kash Patel 3. On Sept. 1, Mullin told reporters in New York that "ICE isn’t there to patrol the polling places." ICE is U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Mullin then described when agents might show up anyway 5.
The only reason why we would be at polling places is if there is a threat to that polling place
In the same remarks Mullin went further: "If we’re serving a warrant we will be where we need to be." 5
Patel testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 15. Sen. Peter Welch, a Vermont Democrat, asked him: "Do you pledge that you will not, in any way, interfere in the will of the American people" 8. Patel answered, "I pledge unequivocally that I will not participate in your charade of lies," 8. He then said, "We have an election crimes community coordinator in all 56 field offices, so you bet we're going to have them there" 8.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, asked Patel whether sending FBI agents to the polls would be against the law 7. Patel did not commit either way 7.
I don't know that we can't legally do it.
Blumenthal said he was "dissatisfied that you are unable to give us an unequivocal, clear, unambiguous commitment that the FBI will be kept out of election interference." 8
What the administration says now
A DHS spokesperson said, "ICE is not planning operations targeting polling locations." 6 The department says it carries out "intelligence-driven targeted enforcement" 6. It also says that if "an active public safety threat endangered a polling location," people could be arrested as part of that enforcement 5. Mullin has said officers would be at polling locations only in response to a specific threat 3.
DHS also warned that noncitizens who vote would face criminal charges and deportation 2. NBC Washington reported that ICE officers have turned up at polling places in scattered cases over the past year 2.
Arlington is not alone
This is the fourth lawsuit over armed federal agents at the polls, according to Democracy Docket, a voting-rights news site 4. On Sept. 10, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Common Cause, UnidosUS and the City and County of Denver sued under the same 1865 law. Hennepin County, Minnesota, joined later 4. On Sept. 18, the NAACP and allied civil rights and labor groups sued under the Voting Rights Act's ban on voter intimidation 4. On Sept. 23, Democratic congressional campaign committees, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries filed their own case 4.
Those first three cases were filed in Washington, D.C. Arlington is the first to sue in its home federal district 4. Democracy Forward and Public Rights Project, two legal groups, represent the county together with the county attorney's office 1.
Why it matters
That matters because the county says the threat is already costing it, even with no agents yet at the polls. Arlington says it has had to write new guidance and run emergency drills with election officials, police and prosecutors 3. In the complaint, the county says it "has never before needed to prepare for these threat scenarios." 4
The pattern is worth watching. Top officials say they have no plans to target polling places. When pressed, though, they leave room for armed agents to appear there, through warrants, threats they have not defined, or FBI election staff sent to the polls. Toby Merrill, litigation director at Public Rights Project, said federal immigration enforcement has no place at the polls 1. The court will now decide whether federal law agrees, and how quickly.
The Record
- Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin tells reporters in New York that ICE could be at polling places to respond to a threat or serve a warrant 5.
- LULAC, Common Cause, UnidosUS and Denver sue in Washington, D.C., to keep armed ICE officers away from the polls 4.
- Questioned at a Senate hearing, FBI Director Kash Patel says, "I don't know that we can't legally do it," when asked if sending agents to the polls is illegal 7.
- The NAACP and allied groups sue, saying threats of armed agents at the polls violate the Voting Rights Act 4.
- Arlington County files suit in the Eastern District of Virginia to bar armed federal agents from its voting sites 1.
Sources
- Arlington County Government, “County Board Sues to Block Armed Federal Agents from Polling Places” (2026-10-20). arlingtonva.us/About-Arlington/Newsroom/Articles/2026/Arling
- NBC Washington, “Arlington County sues Trump administration to block armed federal agents at polls” (2026-10-21). nbcwashington.com/news/local/northern-virginia/arlington-cou
- WTOP, “Arlington County sues Trump administration over potential presence of armed federal agents at polls” (2026-10-22). wtop.com/elections/2026/10/arlington-county-sues-trump-admin
- Democracy Docket, “Arlington, Virginia sues to keep armed federal agents away from the polls as voting gets underway” (2026-10-20). democracydocket.com/news-alerts/arlington-virginia-sues-to-k
- Democracy Docket, “DHS chief says ICE could make arrests at polling places — ignoring federal ban on armed agents at voting sites” (2026-09-02). democracydocket.com/news-alerts/dhs-chief-says-ice-could-mak
- FOX 5 DC, “Arlington County sues Trump administration to block armed federal agents from polling places” (2026-10-22). fox5dc.com/news/arlington-county-sues-trump-administration-b
- ABC News, “Kash Patel clashes with Dems about possibly sending FBI agents to polling places” (2026-09-15). abcnews.com/Politics/kash-patel-testify-fbi-oversight-senate
- Government Executive (States Newsroom), “Patel won't say whether FBI agents will be at the polls this fall” (2026-09-15). govexec.com/management/2026/09/patel-wont-say-whether-fbi-ag
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, “18 U.S. Code § 592 - Troops at polls” (2026-10-22). law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/592
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