Bannon Calls to Have ICE ‘Surround the Polls’ During the Midterm Elections

Former Trump White House advisor turned MAGA podcaster Steve Bannon kicked up a firestorm of anger this week when he told his audience that ICE and federal agents should be deployed to polling stations during the 2026 midterm elections.

Bannon’s comments came after President Donald Trump called for the Republican Party to “take over” elections and to “nationalize” the voting system, which goes against the framework of the U.S. Constitution.

MS NOW’s Katy Tur discussed Bannon’s comments on Wednesday with Hofstra Law Professor James Sample.

“Trump may talk about things that sound crazy, but he always has somebody willing to take some action. He may talk of trying to take over Greenland, but there’s at least an attempt. And yes, he was rebuffed. But if you think about Mike Johnson’s comment, it is a brick in the wall, just like Steve Bannon saying we’re going to have ICE at the polling places, just like Tulsi Gabbard going down to Georgia, just like all of these things that get into the threats against election officials, the rhetoric about voter fraud that doesn’t exist,” Sample began, referring to Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) saying on Tuesday that he believes elections are rigged against the GOP – while acknowledging he has no proof of that.

“When you talk about nationalizing elections, especially nationalizing them on a partisan basis, ‘We need Republicans to take over 15 states,’ you’re not actually trying to promote election integrity. You are affirmatively seeking to undermine election integrity as a predicate to do things that are also unconstitutional,” Sample added.

“Yeah, and they’re being pretty open about it. Let’s listen. You mentioned Steve Bannon. Let’s listen to him,” Tur noted before playing the clip of Bannon from his WarRoom show:

You’re damn right, we’re gonna have ICE surround the polls come November. We’re not gonna sit here and allow you to steal the country again. And you can whine and cry and throw your toys out of the pram all you want, but we will never again allow an election to be stolen.

“The election wasn’t stolen. When you’re talking about people who were not supposed to vote in elections, the idea that there’s fraud—the number is minuscule. Minuscule. In Georgia, I think it was eight people total that weren’t citizens who voted fraudulently. But eight people in Fulton County in the ballots that they just seized? But this messaging is pervasive, and it is preying upon people who want to be convinced that they’re being sidelined, that the government is corrupt,” Tur said, reacting to Bannon.

Watch the clip above via MS NOW.

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