Candidates and campaigners in D.C. know well that they can’t get within 50 feet of polling places. But a message chalked onto the sidewalk outside an early-voting center in Columbia Heights on Monday extended that reminder to another group: “NATL GUARD STAY AWAY.”
A weeklong period of in-person early voting kicked off in D.C. on Monday amidst heightened national political tension and local concerns over possible federal interference — including by federal agents or National Guard troops appearing near or around polling places.
Those worries spiked earlier this month when guard members were seen standing next to a ballot drop box in Foggy Bottom, prompting the D.C. Board of Elections to formally request they stop doing so because it could intimidate voters. National Guard leadership quickly responded, saying that troops in D.C. “are directed not to monitor or secure polling locations.”
“It doesn’t seem like there is an active threat, but of course we’ve seen the way that federal agents and the Guard have flouted authority in the past and we should be prepared to make sure voters feel safe this election,” said Aparna Raj, the Democratic nominee for the Ward 1 seat on the D.C. Council.
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Those preparations have taken various forms in recent weeks. D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb’s office issued guidance to residents and election officials outlining what federal agents and troops can and can’t do regarding the city’s upcoming election. In short, they’re legally restricted from doing much of anything.
“An array of federal statutes bars federal employees, law enforcement, and the military from using their official power to interfere with an election,” read the guidance. “Federal law generally prohibits the federal government from sending the military or ‘armed men,’ including federal law-enforcement officers or National Guard troops, to a polling place. Federal law also forbids anyone from intimidating or coercing voters in federal elections and from interfering with an election officer’s discharge of their duties.”
The elections board has worked that guidance into its training for volunteer coordinators of the city’s polling places.
“In all site coordinator training classes, [they] were instructed that the National Guard, ICE and similar organizations are not allowed in the vote centers or within the 50-foot electioneering area unless they are there to vote,” said Sarah Graham, a spokesperson for the board. “And If they appear and there is any perception of voter intimidation, they should contact our general counsel’s office or call 911.”
A number of groups, including Free D.C., Harriet’s Wildest Dreams, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and Common Cause, will have independent observers at polling places “who can document any problems that arise, and it’s not just law enforcement or soldiers — it’s any irregularities,” said Alex Dodds, a campaign director with Free D.C.
The groups hosted a training session on Monday night, where organizers walked more than 120 volunteers through a series of voting-related scenarios, what D.C. law says and how they should respond.
“Voter intimidation can take many forms,” said Joe DeMartin of the Advancement Project. “Law-enforcement presence, yes. Soldiers hanging out by the polls. ICE officers.”
The general uneasiness comes as the Trump administration has ramped up election-related efforts leading up to the midterms, including an unsuccessful push to rein in the use of mail ballots and more recent litigation taking aim at alleged voting by noncitizens.
While D.C. doesn’t factor into the broader national fight over which party will ultimately control Congress — it lacks voting representation, after all — Lauren Bonds of the National Police Accountability Project said there’s still reason to be concerned about possible electoral interference or intimidation by federal agents or the National Guard.
“D.C. has been a test ground for what federal law enforcement and the National Guard can get away with,” she said. “It could result in federal law enforcement showing up in places where elections are closer or more consequential. This administration is using D.C. to see what they can get away with.”
Bonds added that even if the city’s elections aren’t nationally consequential, D.C. voters could be dissuaded from voting if the National Guard or federal agents are present at or around polling places. That could impact noncitizen D.C. residents, who are legally allowed to vote in local elections (but are still barred from voting in federal races).
“People should care if people are being deterred from voting because of law enforcement,” she said.
More broadly, Dodds argued that even if D.C. won’t help decide who controls Congress, there are still legitimate reasons to fear the federal government could try to interfere in the city’s local elections.
“We’ve heard Trump threaten our mayoral candidate from the Oval Office,” she said. “Anyone who doesn’t think D.C. isn’t important for Trump is missing the bigger picture about how authoritarian leaders try to stay in power.”
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