DOJ Says FBI, ICE Won’t Be Poll Monitors

The Justice Department said FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees would not serve as poll monitors in the midterms, according to Law&Crime. Other federal agencies would still supply staff.

Eric Neff outlined the limits in an October 28 declaration. He is acting chief of the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section. Spectrum News reported that volunteers included employees of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

One Customs and Border Protection employee would also participate, but would not represent the Department of Homeland Security, Neff said. Monitors must introduce themselves to election officials when they arrive and carry federal credentials to show if asked.

Any conversation with voters would have to wait until they finished voting and stepped outside. Neff said monitors would be unarmed and barred from law enforcement work. The assignment called for observation and notes, with business casual dress and no visible agency insignia, Law&Crime reported.

The declaration followed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit from the NAACP against the division and its leader, Harmeet Dhillon. The group sought details about the planned 1,000 monitors, including their roles, qualifications and destinations. The NAACP argued that the expanded federal presence could undermine voters’ ability to take part without intimidation, Law&Crime reported.

Neff also argued that releasing locations could put monitors at risk because other groups planned to watch them, Law&Crime reported.

The monitoring program predates this election. An October 2024 Justice Department guide described staff visits to assess compliance with voting rights laws, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the Help America Vote Act. It also distinguished those staff assignments from federal observers appointed under court orders. Attorneys and other staff could maintain contact with state and local election officials. The guide covered both federal elections and other races.

The NAACP has clashed with the administration over civil rights before. In 2025, the group excluded Donald Trump from its national convention, as AllHipHop reported.

Election Day is Tuesday, November 3. As of October 28, Neff said some monitoring locations still had to be chosen, Spectrum reported.