Will ICE agents play a role in the 2026 US midterm elections?

Since returning to office, Donald Trump has intensified deportations of undocumented immigrants, a campaign led by ICE, which has 22,000 officers and agents after a 120 percent staffing increase. The agency’s tactics, deaths in custody and shootings involving immigration agents have prompted concern among human rights and democracy advocates ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. Human Rights Watch and the ACLU fear the administration could use ICE to intimidate voters or deter them from voting; a University of California, San Diego poll found 40 percent of respondents expected ICE agents near polling stations. Federal law prohibits armed federal agents from operating at polling stations.