FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 16, 2026

Michael A. Gottesman, Esq. (Retired), Founder
New Jersey Public Education Coalition
973-715-0986
Email: info@njpecoalition.org

NEW JERSEY PUBLIC EDUCATION COALITION SUBMITS PROPOSED POLLING-PLACE VOTER-PROTECTION LEGISLATION

NJPEC requests expedited legislative review before the 2026 general election amid concerns about armed federal immigration-enforcement activity near voting locations

WAYNE, NEW JERSEY — The New Jersey Public Education Coalition (NJPEC) has drafted and submitted proposed polling-place voter-protection legislation, together with supporting legal research and analysis, to members of the New Jersey Legislature for review before the 2026 general election.

The proposed legislation entitled, “The New Jersey Voter Protection and Law Enforcement Act,”
responds to growing public concern about the possible presence of armed federal immigration-enforcement officers at or near polling places, particularly polling locations serving immigrant communities, communities of color, and other populations that have historically experienced voter intimidation or unequal access to the electoral process.

Former White House adviser Steve Bannon publicly called for Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to be stationed around polling places during the 2026 midterm election.

Although Trump administration officials have denied having a general plan to deploy ICE officers to patrol polling sites, the administration has not categorically excluded ICE activity at those locations.

While, no deployment of ICE agents to New Jersey polling places has been publicly confirmed, the Coalition’s proposed legislation is intended to address the risk before an incident occurs and to establish clear, uniform rules for Election Day and early voting.

“The right to vote cannot be meaningful if eligible voters are afraid to approach the polling place,” said Michael A. Gottesman, Founder]. “An armed immigration-enforcement presence can affect voter participation even when an officer does not expressly threaten anyone. The appearance of immigration agents near a voting location may reasonably cause citizens in mixed-status families, naturalized citizens, and members of immigrant communities to fear that voting could expose them or their relatives to an unrelated enforcement encounter.”

The Coalition is particularly concerned about the potential effect of law-enforcement activity at polling places serving substantial immigrant, Latino, Black, Asian American, and other minority populations.

The Coalition maintains that election protections should address not only conduct undertaken with a deliberate purpose to intimidate voters, but also official conduct that would have an objectively intimidating effect on a reasonable voter under the circumstances.

New Jersey already recognizes that law-enforcement activity near voting locations may cause voter unease. Guidance issued by the New Jersey Attorney General in May 2026 explains that state law generally prohibits state and local police officers—whether on duty or off duty, uniformed or not—from remaining within 100 feet of a polling place, early-voting location, or ballot drop box while voting is taking place, subject to exceptions for emergencies, requests from election officials, personal voting, and other authorized circumstances.

The Attorney General’s guidance also describes the history behind these protections. During New Jersey’s 1981 gubernatorial election, off-duty law-enforcement officers wearing armbands identifying them as members of a “National Ballot Security Task Force” were allegedly stationed at polling places. Some carried firearms and equipment associated with law enforcement. The incident led to additional statutory restrictions on police participation in elections.

The Coalition’s proposed legislation would supplement existing protections by establishing a defined buffer around polling places and other election facilities and by applying neutral standards to federal, state, county, and municipal law-enforcement personnel.

The proposal is not limited to ICE and does not prohibit legitimate emergency or public-safety responses. Its provisions are designed to:

• Protect voters against both intentional intimidation and law-enforcement conduct having an objectively intimidating effect;
• Establish a 200-foot protected area around polling places, early-voting locations, ballot drop boxes, and designated election facilities;
• Apply generally to law-enforcement personnel without regard to the officer’s employing agency or the political affiliation of any administration;
• Permit officers to respond to immediate threats, emergencies, reported criminal activity, and requests for assistance from election officials;
• Permit officers to vote in their personal capacities and engage in other narrowly defined lawful activities;
• Require law-enforcement activity within the protected area to be limited in scope and duration to its legitimate purpose;
• Establish reporting and documentation requirements so that election officials and the public can determine why officers were present; and
• Provide notice, enforcement procedures, and legal remedies intended to deter violations while avoiding interference with necessary public-safety operations.

Federal and state laws already prohibit voter intimidation, coercion, and interference. Federal law also generally prohibits federal officials from ordering troops or “armed men” to places where elections are held, except when necessary to repel armed enemies of the United States. The United States Department of Justice states that federal protections extend to actual and attempted intimidation, threats, coercion, and interference throughout the voting process.

The legal analysis prepared with the proposed legislation examines New Jersey’s authority to protect election administration while recognizing the constitutional and practical limits on state regulation of federal officers. It addresses the Supremacy Clause, federal preemption, intergovernmental immunity, the First Amendment, due process, equal protection, and the constitutional responsibilities of states in administering elections.
The analysis also explains why neutral coverage, objective standards, emergency exceptions, procedural safeguards, and a direct connection to the protection of voting are important to the proposal’s constitutional defense. The Coalition recognizes that any legislation affecting federal law-enforcement activity is likely to face judicial scrutiny and has submitted its analysis so that legislators, the Office of Legislative Services, the Attorney General, and election officials can evaluate and refine the proposal.

The timing of that review is significant. If New Jersey policymakers conclude that additional statutory protections should be in force for the 2026 general election, legislation would need to be considered, enacted, signed, implemented, and communicated to election and law-enforcement officials before voting begins.

The Coalition has therefore requested expedited review by the appropriate legislative committees and state legal authorities. The submission asks policymakers to determine promptly whether the proposal can be enacted and implemented constitutionally before the general election.

“This proposal is about the conditions under which every eligible voter exercises the franchise,” said Gottesman. “Voters should be able to approach a polling place without confronting an unnecessary armed law-enforcement presence or reasonably fearing that casting a ballot could result in an unrelated immigration-enforcement encounter.”

The proposed legislation and legal analysis were drafted by the New Jersey Public Education Coalition and transmitted to members of the New Jersey Legislature for review and consideration.

A copy of the proposed bill and legal analysis can be found at this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1v63OQ9VsA24Bpy8IhM6tHhxf1aenWcEi?usp=drive_link
ABOUT THE NEW JERSEY PUBLIC EDUCATION COALITION

The New Jersey Public Education Coalition is a grassroots, unaffiliated, nonpartisan organization dedicated to protecting and strengthening public education and promoting informed civic participation throughout New Jersey. The Coalition works to defend public schools from efforts to destabilize, defund, politicize, or ultimately eliminate them, including attempts to inject partisan political or sectarian religious ideology into public-school curricula and governance. Through public education, policy research, legal analysis, advocacy, and community engagement, the Coalition promotes transparent and accountable government and seeks to ensure that every student has access to a strong, inclusive public education and A safe place to learn free from harassment intimidation and bullying. that every eligible voter can participate freely and confidently in the democratic process without intimidation, coercion, or unlawful interference.

Additionally, the Coalition is dedicated to promoting informed civic participation, protecting access to public education, and advancing policies that safeguard the constitutional and civil rights of all New Jersey residents. Through public education, policy research, legal analysis, and community engagement, the Coalition works to ensure that government remains transparent and accountable and that every eligible voter—regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, immigration background, income, or community—can participate freely and confidently in the democratic process without intimidation, coercion, or unlawful interference.

SOURCE REFERENCES
New Jersey Attorney General, “Guidance on the Role of Law Enforcement in Election Activities,” May 21, 2026:
https://www.nj.gov/oag/dcj/agguide/2026_Law-Enforcement-Guidance-for-Elections.pdf

United States Department of Justice, “Voter Intimidation Under Federal Law”:
https://www.justice.gov/crt/media/1348556/dl

CBS News, “Lawsuit Seeks to Block Deployment of ICE, Federal Agents to Polling Sites,” September 11, 2026:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lawsuit-block-ice-agents-polling-sites/

New Jersey Division of Elections, 2026 Election Information:
https://www.nj.gov/state/elections/election-information-2026.shtml