Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., speaks during a hearing at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)
\n\nWASHINGTON (AP) — Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday to confirm he won’t send U.S. troops to polling places during November’s midterm elections, as Democrats have raised concerns that the Trump administration could use the military to interfere with the vote.
\n\n“I’d ask you to confirm a simple statement: the Department of Defense will not send Federal troops to the polls or to seize election materials of any kind,” Slotkin wrote to Hegseth and to Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in letters Tuesday.
\n\nThe Pentagon said in an email that it will respond directly to Slotkin, as it does with all congressional correspondence. The Joint Chiefs did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
\n\nSlotkin told The Associated Press that Trump has been laying the groundwork to claim the midterms were stolen. She noted that Trump contemplated using the military to seize voting machines after his loss in 2020 and has deployed the National Guard to cities against the wishes of Democratic leaders. He also deployed active duty…
Original source: https://apnews.com/business