DENVER — The city of Denver on Thursday joined three civil rights organizations seeking to block the Trump administration from sending armed federal immigration enforcement agents to voting sites during this year’s midterm elections, claiming their presence would be a violation of federal law.
The lawsuit, filed against the Department of Homeland Security, DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Acting ICE Director David Venturella, alleges that ordering immigration enforcement agents to be stationed at polls in Denver and around the country in November would violate a Civil War-era law that prohibits federal officials from placing troops or “armed men… to keep the peace at the polls” where an election is being held.
Watch Denver7's story on a recent SCOTUS ruling for mail-in ballots in the video below:
The complaint, filed in conjunction with the League of United Latin American Citizens, Common Cause, and UnidosUS, argues the Trump administration has created a “Polling Place Policy” that seeks to “deter, discourage, and intimidate voters” ahead of what’s expected to be an election year with high voter turnout.
“The specter of armed officers at polling places threatens the freedom of this upcoming election. It places voters in fear that they will be confronted by armed federal immigration enforcement officers if they choose to cast a ballot,” the lawsuit states.
The plaintiffs allege that actions taken by the Trump administration, including comments earlier this year by former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt that she “can’t guarantee that an ICE agent won’t be around a polling location in November,” lead up to the development and implementation of this so-called “Polling Place Policy.”
Last week, however, Mullin clarified that ICE agents would only be stationed at polling booths and voting sites under specific circumstances.
“The only reason why we would be at polling places is if there is a threat to that polling place or we’re serving a warrant on someone that we have been actively tracking down,” he said.
In a statement to Denver7 Thursday, a DHS spokesperson rebuffed the plaintiffs’ claims that the agency has adopted and is implementing a “Polling Place Policy” targeting voting sites during the midterms in Denver or any other U.S. city. “ICE conducts intelligence-driven targeted enforcement, and if an active public safety threat endangered a polling location, they may be arrested as a result of that targeted enforcement action,” the DHS spokesperson wrote.
But the plaintiffs pushed backed on those claims, arguing ICE has already conducted immigration enforcement operations at polling places in Texas, California and New York, which they claim has already led to voter intimidation. They also claim that at least one county sheriff’s office in Colorado “conducts warrant checks at polling locations and cooperate with ICE.”
“United States citizenship is thus no protection against the threat of being subjected to federal force and interrogated (sic) by armed ICE agents,” the lawsuits states, citing a ProPublica investigation which found that more than 170 U.S. citizens have been detained by ICE for “peacefully exercising their First Amendment rights.”
For Denver specifically, the lawsuit alleges that the Trump administration’s so-called “Polling Place Policy” could potentially disrupt the Denver Clerk and Recorder’s ability to conduct the midterm election.
“The presence of armed federal agents at the drop boxes may deter Denver voters from returning their ballots and may intimidate or disrupt election judges and staff from attempting to collect those ballots, impairing the Clerk’s ability to collect ballots as required by Colorado law,” the lawsuit states.
The complaint claims that Denver election officials have been preparing for the presence of armed federal agents at polling booths and voting sites ahead of the midterms, and further allege that Denver Clerk and Recorder Paul López “has already begun modifying training for election judges and educating staff on how to respond to the presence of federal agents.”
The lawsuit states López has also scheduled training for election staff on how to deescalate interactions with federal agents, how to identify federal agents who may be in plain clothes, how to document the presence of federal agents, and when to request assistance related to the presence of federal agents.
“Election officials in Denver reasonably expect that the presence of armed federal agents at polling locations or 24-hour drop boxes will deter, discourage, and intimidate voters,” the lawsuit states. “This may include voters opting not to go to the polls at all, leaving once they observe armed federal officials without casting or dropping off their ballots, or declining to use Colorado’s same-day voter registration process.”
But Denver Mayor Mike Johnston urged Denverites not to be intimidated by the potential presence of immigration enforcement agents.
"That's not something that we should tolerate here in Denver. We won't tolerate it," Johnston said Thursday. "We want to make sure that every legal voter that wants to vote, can vote. There are lots of things we can disagree on. The right to vote should not be a political battle."
The plaintiffs are asking a judge to declare the so-called “Polling Place Policy” as unlawful, block the DHS and ICE from implementing it, and declare that federal officials lack authority to placed armed officers at polling locations, drop boxes, curbside voting sites and similar election sites where votes are cast, collected, received, counted, or certified during early voting periods and on Election Day itself, “for any reason other than repelling armed enemies of the United States.”
Lawsuit is latest in a series of actions taken by Denver in response to “federal overreach” by the Trump administration
Denver is no stranger to taking the Trump administration to court over what city officials have previously called “federal overreach.”
In February, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston signed an executive order banning ICE from city property to protect Denverites should the Trump administration target the Mile High City with a surge of federal agents.
The order, which came in the weeks following the killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents, requires Denver police to detain any federal officer and remove them from an enforcement operation if they’re using “excessive force” against protesters. It also bans agencies like ICE from using city-owned or city-controlled property for their enforcement operations.
Not long after, the city of Denver unanimously approved a new law that bans federal immigration and other law enforcement officers from wearing masks while working within city limits.
The measure, which includes exemptions for things like undercover operations, as well as SWAT, tactical, and emergency responses, applies to local, state, and federal officers operating in Denver.
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Speaking to Denver7 Thursday, the Denver Clerk and Recorder said Denverites concerned about federal immigration agents showing up at voting sites during the midterms should rest assured that “there’s a lot of people that still believe in American democracy.”
“Don’t let these thugs try to intimidate you. We have fought for the right to vote since way back when. We have faced a lot more challenges that we're seeing right now,” Denver Clerk and Recorder Paul López said. “So many people have sacrificed so much for our right to vote, and we're going to protect it, and so should you.”
López told Denver7 anchor Jessica Porter he wasn't concerned about ICE agents showing up at voting sites come November as city officials have told him it would be illegal for them to be there.
"If they show up — which is illegal — we will ask them to leave. And if they do not leave, we're going to arrest them and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law," López said. "It is illegal for them to be at the polls. It is illegal for them to intimidate voters as they're voting, whether it's a drop box or a polling center, and we will protect our right to vote with every resource necessary."
Given rising tension ahead of the midterms, López urged Denverites not to be discouraged or intimidated on Election Day and to go out and vote.
Colorado election officials told Denver7 last month that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on mail-in voting does not change how Coloradans will be able to cast their ballots during the midterms.
Denver will begin mailing ballots to all active registered voters on Monday, Oct. 5, with Oct. 26 being the last day Denverites will be able to mail their ballots back.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
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