General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has officially confirmed that the U.S. military has no intention of deploying federal troops or National Guard members to polling locations during the November 2026 midterm elections. In a letter addressed to Senator Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat from Michigan, Caine explicitly stated that the Joint Force does not plan to use personnel to seize voting machines, ballots, or any other election-related equipment.
The correspondence, obtained by the press on Monday, serves as a direct response to concerns raised by Democratic lawmakers regarding potential military interference in the democratic process. Caine, who serves as a key military advisor to both Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and President Donald Trump, further assured that he has neither received nor anticipates receiving any unlawful directives concerning the military’s role in the upcoming midterm cycle.
Senator Slotkin had previously expressed alarm, noting that President Trump has historically laid groundwork to challenge election integrity. She pointed to the president’s past contemplation of using the military to seize voting machines following his 2020 election loss, as well as his history of deploying the National Guard to cities against the wishes of local Democratic leadership. Additionally, Slotkin cited the 2025 deployment of active-duty Marines to Los Angeles during an immigration enforcement operation as evidence of the administration’s willingness to utilize military assets in domestic spheres.
While federal law strictly prohibits the deployment of armed federal forces to election sites unless necessary to repel armed enemies of the United States, anxiety remains high among critics. Although White House chief of staff Susie Wiles previously denied that the administration would use the military to suppress voting, questions regarding the Pentagon’s stance persist.
The status of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s response remains unclear. According to Sonja Thrasher, Slotkin’s press secretary, Hegseth has yet to reply to the senator’s formal request for confirmation, which carried a deadline of last Thursday. The Pentagon, which previously indicated it would provide a direct response to the senator, did not immediately provide an update regarding Hegseth’s position. During an April congressional hearing, Hegseth dismissed similar inquiries as “gotcha hypotheticals,” asserting that he has never been ordered to perform illegal acts and would refuse to do so if asked.
This exchange echoes a similar inquiry made in 2020 by Slotkin, then a congresswoman, to the then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley. At that time, Milley emphasized his belief in an apolitical military, stating that any election-related disputes must be resolved by the U.S. Congress and the court system rather than through military intervention. The report also notes that slotkin told the AP earlier in August that Trump has been laying the groundwork to claim the elections were stolen. The report also notes that wASHINGTON (AP) — The highest-ranking officer in the U.S. The report also notes that particularly after the president deployed federal agents in Democratic-led states over the objections of local leaders, anxiety among Democrats that the Trump administration could try to meddle in the midterm elections has grown. The report also notes that “I believe deeply in the principle of an apolitical U.S.
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