DENVER (AP) — A Department of Homeland Security official on Wednesday told state election administrators that immigration agents will not be stationed at the polls during November's midterm elections, trying to swat down one of Democrats' greatest fears about possible election interference from the Trump administration.
Heather Honey, who serves as deputy assistant secretary for election integrity, told the group of secretaries of state that “any suggestion that ICE will be present at any polling location is simply not true,” according to a statement from Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, a Democrat.
A spokeswoman for Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read also said Honey made the pledge, and Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams, a Republican, posted on the social media site X that the promise came from “DHS.”
The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to a request for comment.
Honey, an election conspiracy theorist who has backed false claims that President Donald Trump did not lose the 2020 election, was on the call along with representatives of the FBI, U.S. Election Assistance Commission, Postal Service and other federal agencies to talk about coordination for the midterms.
Such a call normally would be routine, but this year several moves by the Trump administration have unnerved Democratic secretaries of state.
His Department of Justice has been filing lawsuits to get detailed voter data, without explaining why it wants the information. Trump also has been renewing his false claims that widespread fraud marred the 2020 election and has urged his administration to investigate.
Relying on long-debunked election conspiracy theories, the FBI earlier this month raided an election office in Fulton County, Georgia, a Democratic stronghold that includes Atlanta, to seize ballots and other voting records from 2020.
Democratic officials and public interest lawyers around the country have been strategizing for months about how to react to possible Trump meddling in the midterms voting and ballot counting.
Honey's presence on the call was a reminder of the new environment for election officials. The U.S. Constitution provides that states, not the federal government, run elections. Most states vest that power in the elected office of the secretary of state.
Participants on the call said Democratic secretaries of state asked Honey several questions about Trump administration cuts to election security funding, its campaign to root out noncitizen voting — something that is already illegal and rarely occurs — as well as fears about federal law enforcement officers appearing at polling places in the fall.
The White House has scoffed at those fears before, noting there was no disruption during last year's election, when Democrats performed well. During a congressional hearing earlier this month, the heads of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection both answered “No, sir” when asked if they are involved in any efforts to guard voting precincts.
Democrats note that Trump was willing to try to overturn his 2020 loss, pardoned those who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, on his behalf and has stocked his administration with people who helped him try to overturn the results in 2020.
Associated Press writer Claire Rush in Portland, Oregon, contributed to this report.
FILE - The Department of Homeland Security logo during a news conference in Washington, Feb. 25, 2015. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
FILE - Heather Honey, a conservative election researcher, leaves the federal courthouse in Harrisburg, Pa., Oct. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Mark Scolforo, file)
SEATTLE (AP) — Hilary Knight doesn't want to let what she called a “distasteful” joke by President Donald Trump about the gold-medal winning U.S. women's Olympic hockey team get in the way of a historic performance by American women across all sports at the Milan Cortina Games.
“I just thought the joke was distasteful and unfortunate," Knight said on Wednesday alongside fellow Olympians Alex Carpenter, Hannah Bilka and Cayla Barnes at the Seattle Space Needle ahead of their return to play for the Seattle Torrent of the Professional Women's Hockey League. "And, I think just the way women are represented, it’s a great teaching point and really shines light on how women should be championed for their amazing feats.”
Knight, a two-time gold medalist whose 15 goals and 33 points in Olympic competition are the most by a U.S. hockey player at the Games, said she's not focusing on an offhand comment by Trump after the American men topped Canada for gold in overtime on Sunday.
Talking on a speakerphone in the postgame locker room, Trump extended an invitation to the White House to the men's team, then added, “We’re going to have to bring the women’s team, you do know that.” The president later joked that if he didn't extend the invitation, he would probably be impeached.
While the vast majority of the men's team flew to Washington on Tuesday and visited Trump in the White House before being guests at the State of the Union, many of the women's players were on the way back to their professional or college clubs.
USA Hockey, which said it was “honored” by the invitation, cited logistical issues as the major hurdle that prevented the women's team from stopping by the White House. The team was originally scheduled to fly commercially into New York on Monday, but was forced to reroute through Atlanta due to a snowstorm in the Northeast.
Several players were going to stick around New York for promotional purposes, even ringing the bell at the New York Stock Exchange. Those scheduled appearances had to be canceled because of flight changes.
Knight lamented that the video — which included several players laughing after Trump's comments — took on a life of its own and didn't convey the true nature of the relationship between the men's and women's US hockey programs.
“The men’s and the women’s team did it together,” Knight said. “And, that’s super special. It’s never been done in our program’s history. It’s something we’re extremely proud about. But these women are amazing. And whatever’s going on should never outshine or minimize their work and our success on the world stage.”
Kelly Pannek, a forward on the women's team, told reporters “the video is what it is" but added it was a “special feeling” spending time with the men's team after they won the first Olympic gold for the U.S. in 46 years. Pannek believes there is mutual respect and support on both sides.
Goaltender Jeremy Swayman told reporters in Boston after returning to practice with the Bruins that the men “should have reacted differently” to Trump's remarks.
“To share that gold medal with them is something that we’re forever grateful for,” Swayman said. "And now that we’re home we get to share that together forever and see the incredible support we have from the USA and share this incredible gold medal.”
The earliest the U.S. women could make a White House visit would be in late spring after the conclusion of the PWHL season.
The U.S. won 12 gold medals in Milan Cortina, with women playing a hand in eight of them. The women's hockey team outscored opponents 33-2 on its way to the top of the podium.
“This was the best American women’s hockey team, the best American team we’ve ever put together on the world stage when the lights have been the brightest ever,” Knight said. “And so, I think everybody felt that going through the tournament. And, I want to celebrate. I want people to be remembered for that. I want the legacy of this team to be remembered.”
AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
United States' Hilary Knight (21) celebrates after scoring her side's opening goal during a women's ice hockey gold medal game between the United States and Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Members of the United States' Olympic gold medal hockey team enter the gallery as President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. (Kenny Holston/The New York Times via AP, Pool)
United States' Kendall Coyne, left, and United States' Hilary Knight celebrate after victory ceremony for women's ice hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
