Reports of National Guard troops standing next to a D.C. ballot drop box in Foggy Bottom on Thursday have prompted complaints from some residents and an official request from the D.C. Board of Elections that it not happen again.
“We are addressing the concerns with the National Guard directly and have requested that they impose limitations on the placement of National Guard service members near drop boxes and other voting locations in the District,” said board spokesperson Sarah Graham.
The ballot drop box wasn’t in use when the National Guard troops were filmed standing next to it.
“We are aware of imagery circulating online of service members standing near a ballot drop box. Maintaining public trust is a top priority, and JTF-DC service members are directed not to monitor or secure polling locations,” said a spokesperson for the Joint Task Force, which is in charge of the D.C. deployment, in response to questions from The Washington Sun.
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“JTF-DC is actively addressing this specific instance and remains fully committed to conducting its missions professionally, lawfully, and with respect for the public’s constitutional rights,” the spokesperson said.
The city’s 55 drop boxes opened Friday morning and will be available for voters to drop off their ballots through the end of Election Day, which is Nov. 3.
Ballot drop boxes are popular with voters; for the June primary, more than 63,000 voters used them to return their ballots, representing roughly 40% of all votes cast. The boxes tend to be in high-traffic areas — including by Metro stations like in Foggy Bottom.
It is against federal law for troops to be deployed around polling places.
Reactions to the video that circulated on social media at least partly reflect the ongoing discomfort that some D.C. residents still feel with having the National Guard deployed in D.C. on President Donald Trump’s orders. While he has credited their presence with helping drive down crime, critics say their deployment is unnecessary and sets a troubling precedent around the use of the military for law enforcement.
As of Thursday, 2,864 National Guard troops were deployed in D.C., down from a high of more than 5,000 during the summer months. Roughly 2,300 of them are from 18 states outside of D.C., with Georgia, Mississippi and Florida having the biggest contingents.
There have been recent complaints about Guard members operating around D.C. schools, and city officials have asked that they refrain from doing so. Ward 2 D.C. Council member Brooke Pinto will hold a public hearing on Nov. 5 to hear from residents on their experiences with the National Guard in D.C.
Some of the concerns with the Guard members at the D.C. ballot box could also stem from broader worries about the Trump administration’s reported plans to deploy federal agents around polling places for the November election. This month, the Department of Homeland Security said it has no plans to station ICE agents at the polls.
The Trump administration also attempted to rein in mail voting generally this year; D.C. joins a handful of states that automatically send all registered voters a mail ballot, and most voters now prefer that to voting in person. Those efforts were stymied by litigation.
Still, changes to how the U.S. Postal Service postmarks ballots have prompted election officials to warn voters that if they’re going to use USPS to mail in their ballot, they should ensure that the postmark is not dated after Election Day, which would lead to the ballot being rejected.
A weeklong period of in-person early voting in D.C. kicks off Oct. 26.
This article has been updated to correct the date of Council member Brooke Pinto’s upcoming public hearing.
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