The remarks were in response to concerns from Democrats that the military could be used to interfere in elections.
Published August 31, 2026
The chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, the country’s highest military official, has assured opposition lawmakers that there are no plans to send troops to polling stations during the November 3 election.
“The joint force has no plans to deploy federal military or federal National Guard members to polling places during the 2026 election,” Gen. Dan Cain said in a letter obtained by The Associated Press on Monday. “Similarly, the joint force has no plans to use such personnel to seize ballots, voting machines, or other election-related materials.”
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Mr. Kaine’s letter was addressed to Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, who recently called on Mr. Kaine and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to confirm that they would not send troops to polling places. Kaine, who advises Hegseth and President Donald Trump on military matters, also wrote, “I have not received, and do not plan to receive, any unlawful orders regarding the joint force’s role in the upcoming November 2026 midterm elections.”
Fears among Democrats that the Trump administration will try to interfere in the midterm elections are growing, especially after the president sent federal agents to Democratic-led states over the objections of local leaders. He said these were needed to crack down on immigration, as well as to combat crime and protests.
Slotkin told The Associated Press in early August that President Trump was laying the groundwork to claim the November election was stolen. He noted that Trump has considered using the military to seize voting machines after losing to President Joe Biden in 2020 and has deployed the National Guard to cities against the wishes of Democratic leaders. It also sent active-duty Marines to Los Angeles during the 2025 immigration crackdown.
Federal law prohibits sending federal armed forces to election sites unless “necessary to repel armed enemies of the United States.” If any part of the military were to be involved, it would likely be the state-controlled National Guard.
“The tradition of nonpartisan military service and the constitutional guardrails that prevent our military from becoming the domestic police force of one party are essential to preserving our democracy,” Slotkin said in a news release announcing a letter to U.S. military officials this month. “Thus, our nation’s most senior defense and security leaders are the last safeguards for our democracy.”
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles denied in an interview with Vanity Fair last year that President Trump would use the military to suppress voting in the midterm elections.
Sonya Thrasher, a spokeswoman for Mr. Slotkin, said Mr. Hegseth has not responded to a letter asking him to confirm that he will not send troops to polling places in November.
Slotkin wanted answers by last Thursday.
In 2020, Gen. Mark Milley, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, responded to a similar letter from Slotkin, then a member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
“I believe deeply in the principles of an apolitical American military,” Milley wrote. “If a dispute arises over any aspect of the election, the law requires that U.S. courts and the U.S. Congress, not the U.S. military, resolve the dispute.”
