WASHINGTON — Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger said Tuesday that she plans to issue an executive order on Wednesday to help election workers respond if federal agents show up at polling sites in Virginia.
Speaking at a conference hosted by the Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank, Spanberger said the order would include details on “how Virginia state employees or people working in support of Virginia’s state-run elections can react to, in this particular case, federal agents who might be appearing at a location where the worry is that they’re principally there to intimidate or scare people.”
Some election officials and Democratic politicians have worried that President Donald Trump — who routinely makes false claims of widespread voter fraud — might interference in this year’s midterm elections, which are run by the state and local officials across the country.
“Throughout history, we have seen efforts at intimidating voters. My worry is that we will continue to see those heightened,” Spanberger said. “The reality is that the challenges and the fear that people might have when going to the polling place is real.”
Former Trump White House aide Steve Bannon said in March that deploying Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to airports is “perfect training for the fall of 2026.”
In February, NBC News reported that California Secretary of State Shirley Weber had asked federal authorities during a call about whether election officials would be alerted about immigration enforcement operations near polling sites.
“Any suggestion that ICE is going to be present at polling places is simply disinformation. There will be no ICE presence at polling locations,” Heather Honey, a deputy assistant secretary for election integrity, said at the time, according to three call participants.
Federal monitors from the Justice Department routinely observe state-run elections, but it is illegal for law enforcement officials to show up at polling sites or for the federal government to interfere with election operations.
A Spanberger spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment for additional details.
A coalition of local elected prosecutors calling themselves the Project for the Fight Against Federal Overreach said earlier Tuesday they would fight back against any federal interference in elections.
“Anyone — federal agent or otherwise — who shows up at a polling place in Philadelphia to intimidate voters is going to find out what ‘find out’ means,” Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said. “A federal badge is not a license to violate the Constitution, and it is not a shield from state criminal law.”
