Slotkin presses DHS pick on ICE at polls, says she can’t trust Trump to allow ‘free and fair’ election

By Fox News · Fox News

Homeland Security Secretary-designate Markwayne Mullin was challenged Wednesday over concerns that the Trump administration could position ICE agents near polling places this November. The back-and-forth with Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., comes amid warnings from some on the right that many blue states’ election security policies are potentially allowing illegal immigrants to cast ballots for races they are prohibited from participating in. Illegal immigrants are allowed to vote in certain local elections, starting with Takoma Park, Maryland, in 1993, but are federally banned from voting for congressional and presidential candidates. When asked by Slotkin whether the feds or the states run elections, Mullin cited the Constitution in responding that they are a state responsibility that includes some federal oversight. TRUMP DOUBLES DOWN ON CALLS FOR GOP TO 'NATIONALIZE' VOTING AS CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS BALK "So if you're talking about the Save America Act requiring you, which is within the Constitution, by the way … to be citizens of the United States, I don't think it's too much to ask somebody to prove they're a citizen of the U.S. to vote in a federal election," he said. Slotkin said she was not inferring any controversy over the SAVE Act , which remains held up in the Senate, but instead was raising concerns about immigration enforcement activity on Election Day. "If you are Secretary of Homeland Security , do you feel you have the authority to put uniformed officers at polling locations in 2026?" she asked. Mullin replied he had discussed the subject with her in her office and confirmed he would only dispatch ICE if there was a "specific threat" and "not for intimidation." Slotkin countered by questioning the type of threat that could arise, adding that such agents were not dispatched during dangerous periods in history, like World War II or the War on Terror. DHS SAYS ICE AGENTS WILL NOT BE AT POLLING PLACES DURING MIDTERMS Mullin said he couldn’t engage in hyp…