Republican Lawmaker Wants ICE at Polling Places. That Would Be Illegal.

When the U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced last week that it would hold a press event in Arizona focused on “election security,” voting rights advocates braced for the worst: Organizers feared federal officials would once again invoke long-debunked claims about noncitizens voting and float the idea of deploying Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to polling locations.

That scenario never materialized. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem instead appeared to promote the federal SAVE Act, which would require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote.

But days later, at the Arizona Legislature, a proposal surfaced that closely mirrors what civil liberties groups had feared.

Senate Bill 1570 would require each Arizona county recorder and county board of supervisors to enter into a written agreement with a federal immigration law enforcement agency to ensure a federal immigration law enforcement presence at every location “where ballots are cast or deposited” during the 2026 general election. The law was originally introduced by Sen. Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek) as a bill that would outlaw diversity initiatives, but has been rewritten as a striker bill by Sen. Wendy Rogers (R-Flagstaff).

The amended bill immediately received widespread condemnation from voting rights groups who said this was a tactic to intimidate voters. 

“Politicians with bad ideas who are incapable of winning the hearts and the minds of the voters have decided that they can retain power by keeping Americans from voting,” said Alex Gulotta, Arizona state director for All Voting Is Local. “They want to militarize our polling places to create terror and fear because they know they cannot win fair and square.” 

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Under SB 1570, federal immigration agents would be stationed at early voting sites, Election Day polling places, and ballot drop boxes during all hours that voting occurs. The measure states agents may observe election activities and perform lawful duties within the scope of their federal authority, and may not interfere with casting or depositing ballots “except as otherwise authorized by law.” It declares that “maintaining the integrity of elections conducted in this state is a compelling state interest.”

The bill does not explicitly authorize agents to question, detain or arrest voters solely to determine eligibility, but it includes a clause permitting actions otherwise allowed under state or federal law.

If the bill were to pass both chambers and be signed into law, it would face immediate legal hurdles.

Arizona law sharply restricts policing activity at polling locations. State statute prohibits electioneering within 75 feet of a polling place while polls are open. Election marshals — not outside law enforcement — are responsible for preserving order from the opening of polls until ballots are counted. Police may be contacted only in exceptional circumstances. State law also prohibits entering a polling place on Election Day while carrying a deadly weapon unless specifically authorized. 

Federal law likewise bars the deployment of armed troops or federal law enforcement at polling places except to repel an armed enemy of the United States. Legal observers say immigration agents who attempt to identify or arrest voters at the polls would be violating state and federal protections against voter intimidation.

Sen. Lauren Kuby (D-Tempe) said masked ICE agents outside polling locations would amount to intimidation.

She questioned how masked and armed federal agents at voting locations would cause trouble: “How many examples do we need of ICE questioning people they don't think look or sound like they should be there?”

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There is also likely to be pushback from county election officials, said Joel Edman, strategic initiatives director at Progress Arizona, who said the administrative burden of negotiating agreements with federal agencies is significant.

It remains unclear whether the bill would become law if it clears the Senate and House. An email to the governor’s press team asking whether she would sign the measure was not returned by publication time, but voting rights and election protection groups said there is little reason to believe the governor will sign it. 

“It's obviously a racist waste of time,” said Edman. 

SB 1570 is scheduled to be heard in committee tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Members of the public may attend to make a statement or register their opinion through the state’s Request to Speak system.