Federal and State Election Laws Ban Federal Forces from Polling Places

Brennan Center for Justice

This explainer by Sean Morales-Doyle provides a concise legal overview of the federal and state prohibitions on deploying military forces or armed federal agents to polling places. It details the federal statutes — dating to the post-Civil War era — that make such deployments a criminal offense, and explains why neither emergency powers nor the Insurrection Act provide a legal basis for overriding those protections. The explainer also outlines the legal remedies available to voters and election workers who face intimidation, including civil suits under the Voting Rights Act and state-level criminal and civil protections. It provides useful context for understanding the legal boundaries on federal military presence in election settings — and how those boundaries differ from the authorities governing state Guard deployments.