WASHINGTON — Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine says there are no plans to send troops to polling places in the November midterm election, nor has he received such an order, in response to concerns from Democrats that President Donald Trump could use the military to interfere in the election.
Caine, the nation's highest-ranking military officer, made the statement in a letter to Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan who asked him in an Aug. 18 correspondence to confirm the military would not send troops to the polls or seize any election materials.
In the letter, which Slotkin's office released Aug. 31, Caine said the Joint Force "will continue to act, in accordance with the Constitution and the law." He said election administration
and security "remain the fundamental responsibility of state and local officials."
"The Joint Force has no plans to send Federal military personnel or Federalized members of the National Guard to polling places during the 2026 elections. Likewise, the Joint Force has no plans to use such personnel to seize ballots, voting machines, or other election related-material," he said.
Caine added: "I have neither received nor anticipate receiving any unlawful order concerning the role of the Joint Force in the upcoming November 2026 midterm elections."
The Associated Press first reported Caine's response.
Federal law generally prohibits the deployment of U.S. troops at polling places or their use in overseeing elections, reflecting long-standing restrictions on military involvement in the electoral process.
But Slotkin has pointed to comments from Trump in which he did not rule out sending the National Guard or ICE agents to polling sites. "I'd do anything necessary to make sure we have honest elections,"he said in May in response to a question from a reporter.
Trump has also remarked to reporters that he should have deployed the National Guard to seize ballot boxes after the 2020 election that he lost. During his second term in the White House, Trump has deployed the National Guard to Democratic-led cities in his push to crack down on crime.
Democrats have warned Trump, who has questioned the integrity of U.S. elections, is laying the groundwork to argue the midterm election was stolen, like he did after his 2020 defeat. As Trump's polling numbers sag near record lows, Democrats have strong odds to take control of the House and they are increasingly optimistic about their path to reclaim the Senate.
Slotkin sent a similar letter seeking a commitment not to send the military to polling sites to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, but he has not responded.
Slotkin, in an interview on CNN, said she hopes Hegseth eventually responds, but she added: "In the spirit of having a customer of one, he cares about what one guy thinks of him," referring to Trump, "and not the rest of the country."
In a fiery exchange with Slotkin during an April Senate committee meeting, Hegseth called it "yet another gotcha hypothetical" when she asked whether he would follow any order from Trump to deploy the military to seize ballots or voting machines in the 2026 election. "I've never been ordered to do anything illegal and I won't" Hegseth said. "That goes without saying."
Ahead of the 2020 election, Gen. Mark Milley, then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, responded to a similar letter from Slotkin. He wrote state and federal governments have qualified individuals who oversee elections, adding that, “I do not see the U.S. Military as part of this process.”
Contributing: Reuters
Reach Joey Garrison on @joeygarrison.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'No plans' to send troops to midterm polling sites, top general says
