Civil rights groups sue Trump administration over ‘voter intimidation’ fears ahead of US midterms
A coalition of civil rights groups is suing Trump administration officials to try to stop them from threatening to deploy federal law enforcement officers to polling stations in the upcoming US midterm elections.
A coalition of civil rights groups is suing Trump administration officials to try to stop them from threatening to deploy federal law enforcement officers to polling stations in the upcoming US midterm elections.
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The lawsuit, which is led by the NAACP and filed on Friday, claims that by threatening to deploy law enforcement to survey elections and initiating new voter roll oversight, Trump’s government has violated a section of the Voting Rights Act regarding voter intimidation.
In the complaint, the plaintiffs wrote: “The result is predictable: voters across the country – particularly Black, Latino, and Asian voters, naturalized citizens and members of mixed-status families – are afraid to vote, help others vote and participate in civic life.”
Other examples of voter intimidation were cited by the plaintiffs, including President Trump using a primetime address to over-inflate claims of noncitizen voting.
This reflects the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations in communities of colour, as well as the president’s efforts to create a national voter eligibility list.
The lawsuit is the most recent incident of groups attempting to block Trump from asserting more control over US elections ahead of what is set to be a competitive midterm in November.
When approached for comment by The Guardian, White House official pointed to the administration’s past statements denying any plan to deploy ICE agents to polls in November.
Former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters in February that it was “not something I’ve ever heard the president consider”.
In a statement, Justice Department spokesperson Kiersten Pels said: “The DOJ has never said it would send federal law enforcement to polling locations. Any suggestion otherwise is fearmongering.”
According to federal law, no armed federal officers or members of the armed forces may be deployed to any location where an election is taking place.
The administration has not yet placed any armed officers or members of the military at polling locations.
In a statement, DHS said: “ICE is not planning operations targeting polling locations.”
It maintains that the agency carries out “intelligence-driven targeted enforcement” and would only act in the event of a public safety threat at a polling location.