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Alabama
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Yes
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“The sheriff of each county shall, on each day of election, be present in person or by deputy at all election precincts where elections are held in the county, and shall preserve good order; and, in order that every elector who desires to vote may do so without interference or interruption, such sheriff or deputy may specially deputize a sufficient force to act at all election precincts on the day of any election that the sheriff or deputy may deem necessary. Any sheriff or deputy who willfully or corruptly fails to perform any duty imposed by this section, on conviction, shall be punished in accordance with Section 17-17-2.” (Ala. Code Section 17-9-1)
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Alaska
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Not Specified
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Arkansas
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Yes
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“A person may not enter a polling site on election day during voting hours unless the person is…(F) a law enforcement officer acting in the line of duty.” (A.C.A. § 7-5-310)
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Arizona
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Not Specified
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California
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Yes, if conducting official business
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“Any person in possession of a firearm or any uniformed peace officer… or any person who is wearing a uniform of a peace officer…who is stationed in the immediate vicinity of, or posted at, a polling place without written authorization of the appropriate city or county elections official is punishable by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), by imprisonment for 16 months or two or three years, or in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by both…. This section shall not apply to… a peace officer who is conducting official business in the course of his or her public employment or who is at the polling place to cast his or her vote.” (West’s Ann.Cal.Elec.Code § 18544)
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Colorado
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Not Specified*
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Connecticut
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Yes, if requested
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“The registrars of voters may request the head of the police department of the municipality, or, if none, a constable serving such municipality, to provide police protection at any polling place of any regular or special state or municipal election where they may anticipate disorder. The moderator of such election may, when any disorder arises in such election and the offender refuses to submit to the moderator’s lawful authority, order any officer with power of arrest to take the offender into custody and, if necessary, to remove the offender from such election until the offender conforms to order or, if need be, until such election is closed, and thereupon such officer may command all necessary assistance.” (C.G.S.A. § 9-230)
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Delaware
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Not Specified
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Washington, D.C.
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Yes, if requested
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“The Precinct Captain shall have full authority to maintain order, pursuant to the Election Act… including full authority to request police officials to enforce lawful orders of the Precinct Captain.”
“The only persons who shall be permitted to be present in voting places or ballot counting places are the following…(b)police officers.” (D.C. Mun. Regs. Tit. 3, § 707)
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Florida
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Yes, with permission
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“The sheriff shall deputize a deputy sheriff for each polling place and each early voting site who shall be present during the time the polls or early voting sites are open and until the election is completed, who shall be subject to all lawful commands of the clerk or inspectors, and who shall maintain good order. The deputy may summon assistance from among bystanders to aid him or her when necessary to maintain peace and order at the polls or early voting sites.” (West’s F.S.A. § 102.031)
“No sheriff, deputy sheriff, police officer, or other officer of the law shall be allowed within the polling place without permission from the clerk or a majority of the inspectors, except to cast his or her ballot. Upon the failure of any of said officers to comply with this provision, the clerk or the inspectors or any one of them shall make an affidavit against such officer for his or her arrest.” (West’s F.S.A. § 102.101)
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Georgia
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Yes, to enforce the law
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“Any law enforcement officer who:
(1) Willfully neglects or refuses to clear an avenue to the door of any polling place which is obstructed in such a way as to prevent electors from entering, when called upon to do so by any poll officer or elector of the precinct;
(2) Willfully neglects or refuses to maintain order and quell any disturbance if such arises at any polling place upon the day of any primary or election, when called upon to do so by any poll officer or elector of the precinct; or
(3) Willfully hinders or delays, or attempts to hinder or delay, any poll officer in the performance of any duty under this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.” (Ga. Code Ann., § 21-2-593)
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Hawaii
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Not Specified
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Idaho
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Not Specified*
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Illinois
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Yes
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“Representatives of an election authority…and law enforcement agencies, including but not limited to a United States Attorney, a State’s attorney, the Attorney General, and a State, county, or local police department, in the performance of their official election duties, shall be permitted at all times to enter and remain in the polling place. Upon entering the polling place, such representatives shall display their official credentials or other identification to the judges of election…Uniformed police officers assigned to polling place duty shall follow all lawful instructions of the judges of election.” (10 ILCS 5/7-34)
“Board of Election Commissioners may demand of the chief of police or the sheriff, to furnish officers of the law to attend during the progress of any registration, revision or election, at any place or places of registration, or any polling place, or places, designated by said commissioners, or to attend at any meeting of said commissioners. Said officers of the law, shall be furnished by said chief of police or sheriff and shall be stationed in the place or places of registration and polling place or places in such manner as said commissioners shall direct, and during said assignment shall be under the direction and control of the election commissioners.” (10 ILCS 5/11-4)
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Indiana
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Yes, if summoned
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“Law enforcement officers of the state and of political subdivisions may not come within fifty (50) feet of the polls, except to do any of the following:
(1) To serve process of court.
(2) To vote.
(3) To be present when summoned by the election sheriffs or precinct judges.
(4) To serve as a pollbook holder.
(5) To serve as an absentee ballot courier appointed under IC 3-11.5-4-22.” (IC 3-6-6-36)
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Iowa
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Yes, if assigned or requested
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“The following persons shall be permitted to be present at and in the immediate vicinity of the polling places, provided they do not solicit votes… 4. Any peace officer assigned or called upon to keep order or maintain compliance with the provisions of this chapter, upon request of the commissioner or of the chairperson of the precinct election board.” (I.C.A. § 49.104)
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Kansas
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Not Specified
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Kentucky
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Yes, if requested and to enforce the law
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“Any precinct election officer, county clerk, deputy county clerk, or any law enforcement official may enforce the election laws and maintain law and order at the polls and within one hundred (100) feet of any entrance to the building in which the voting machine is located if that entrance is unlocked and is used by voters. Assistance may be requested of any law enforcement officer.” (KRS § 117.235)
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Louisiana
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Yes, if summoned or in case of emergency
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“Law enforcement officers shall not be stationed at polling places on election day, but the commissioners or the clerk of court may summon law enforcement officers to assist them in preserving order, enforcing the election laws, or protecting election officials from interference with the performance of their duties. Law enforcement officers shall not be eligible to serve as commissioners-in-charge, commissioners, alternate commissioners, or watchers.”
“Notwithstanding any provision of this Section to the contrary, law enforcement officers may enter the polling place when there is a reasonable belief there is an emergency and the commissioners are unable to summon the law enforcement officers.” (LSA-R.S. 18:428)
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Maine
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Yes, if permitted
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“The clerk, election officials and not more than 2 voters in excess of the number of voting booths may be within the guardrail enclosure. The warden may permit peace officers to be within the enclosure to enforce the law. All other persons must remain outside of the enclosure.” (21-A M.R.S.A. § 681)
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Maryland
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Yes
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“A police officer who is on duty at a polling place shall obey the order of an election judge for that polling place.
A police officer making an arrest under an order of an election judge is fully protected in so doing as if the police officer received a valid warrant to make the arrest. A police officer who is on duty at a polling place shall protect a challenger or watcher in the discharge of the duties of the challenger or watcher.” (MD Code, Election Law, § 10-304)
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Massachusetts
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Yes
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“The board or officer in charge of the police force of each city and town shall detail a sufficient number of police officers or constables for each building that contains the polling place for one or more precincts at every election therein to preserve order and to protect the election officers and supervisors from any interference with their duties and to aid in enforcing the laws relating to elections; provided, however, that this section may apply to section 25B at the discretion of the election officers and registrars for a city or town.” (M.G.L.A. 54 § 72)
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Michigan
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Not Specified
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Minnesota
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Yes, if summoned
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“Except when summoned by an election judge to restore the peace or when voting or registering to vote, no peace officer shall enter or remain in a polling place or stand within 50 feet of the entrance of a polling place.” (M.S.A. § 204C.06)
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Mississippi
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Not Specified
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Missouri
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Yes, if requested
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“It shall be the duty of the police, if requested by the election authority or judges of election, to exclude any watcher or challenger from the polling place or the place where votes are being counted.” (V.A.M.S. 115.111)
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Montana
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Yes, to enforce the law
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“An election officer, sheriff, constable, or other peace officer may clear the passageway, prevent any obstruction, or arrest any individual obstructing the passageway to a polling place.” (MCA 13-13-122)
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Nebraska
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Yes, if appointed or summoned
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“The election commissioner, county clerk, or city or village clerk may appoint or summon such police officers and sheriffs as may be necessary to maintain order at the election and enforce the Election Act. Except in counties having an election commissioner, if no police officer or sheriff is available, the judges of election may appoint one or more persons in writing to act as and have the powers of a police officer.” (Neb.Rev.St. § 32-924)
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Nevada
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Yes, if requested and appointed
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“If requested by the city clerk, the chief law enforcement officer of the city shall:
(a) Appoint an officer for each polling place in the city and for the central election board or the absent ballot central counting board; or
(b) Deputize, as an officer for the election, an election board officer for each polling place and for the central election board or the absent ballot central counting board. The deputized officer may not receive any additional compensation for the services he or she provides as an officer during the election for which the officer is deputized. Officers so appointed and deputized shall preserve order during hours of voting and attend the closing of the polls.” (N.R.S. 293C.220)
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New Hampshire
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Not Specified
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New Jersey
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Yes, if requested
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“Such election board, or any two members thereof, may, by writing under their hands whenever in their opinion it shall be necessary to do so, request the municipal authorities of any municipality within which their district is situated or the body or officer having charge and direction of the police force in such municipality, to detail one or more policemen to assist in preserving the peace and good order in and about such polling place, which request shall forthwith be complied with as far as possible by the body or officer to whom the same is made.” (N. J. S. A. 19:6-15)
“No person who is employed as a police officer, either full-time or part-time, by the State or an instrumentality thereof, or by a political subdivision of the State or an instrumentality thereof, and who is a member of a district board of elections or serves as a duly authorized challenger for a political party or a candidate or on a public question, shall wear a police officer's uniform or carry an exposed weapon while serving as a board member or a challenger, as the case may be, at a polling place on an election day. Any person who violates this section is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.” (N. J. S. A. 19:6-15.1)
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New Mexico
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Yes, if requested
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“The presiding judge or any election judge may call upon any peace officer to assist in the maintenance of order in the polling place. When so requested, the peace officer shall render assistance.” (N. M. S. A. 1978, § 1-12-4)
“A. Any member of the state police or other peace officer may enter a polling place upon request for the purpose of observing the conduct of the election.
B. No member of the state police or other peace officer shall interfere in any way with a member of the precinct board, a voter or the conduct of the election, except to assist in maintaining order and orderly control of access when requested by the presiding judge or an election judge.
C. Any member of the state police or other peace officer violating Subsection B of this section is guilty of a petty misdemeanor and in addition to any other penalty provided by law shall be subject to dismissal and is ineligible for reinstatement.” (N. M. S. A. 1978, § 1-12-5)
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New York
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Yes
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“In the city of New York, during days of primary, general, special and community school board elections, at each premises wherein a polling place or places are located, at least one police officer or peace officer designated by the police commissioner of such city pursuant to the provisions of article two of the criminal procedure law shall be assigned for duty from the opening until the closing of the polls. Additional police officers or peace officers may be assigned as is deemed appropriate by the police commissioner of such city.” (McKinney’s Election Law § 8-104)
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North Carolina
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Yes, if requested
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“In the discharge of the duties prescribed in the preceding paragraph of this section, the chief judge and judges may call upon the sheriff, the police, or other peace officers to aid them in enforcing the law. They may order the arrest of any person violating any provision of the election laws, but such arrest shall not prevent the person arrested from registering or voting if he is entitled to do so. The sheriff, police officers, and other officers of the peace shall immediately obey and aid in the enforcement of any lawful order made by the precinct election officials in the enforcement of the election laws. The chief judge and judges of election of any precinct, or any two of such election officials, shall have the authority to deputize any person or persons as police officers to aid in maintaining order at the place of registration or voting.” (N.C.G.S.A. § 163-48)
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North Dakota
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Not Specified
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Ohio
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Yes
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“The officer or authority having command of the police force of any municipal corporation or the sheriff of any county, on requisition of the board of elections or the secretary of state, shall promptly detail for service at the polling place in any precinct of such municipal corporation or county such force as the board or secretary of state considers necessary. On every day of election such officer or authority shall have a special force in readiness for any emergency and for assignment to duty in the precinct polling places. At least one policeman shall be assigned to duty in each precinct on each day of an election, when requested by the board or the secretary of state. Such police officer shall have access at all times to the polling place, and he shall promptly place under arrest any person found violating any provisions of Title XXXV of the Revised Code.” (R.C. § 3501.34)
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Oklahoma
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Not Specified
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Oregon
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Not Specified
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Pennsylvania
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Yes, if requested
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“The election officers, or any three qualified electors of any election district, may call upon any mayor, chief burgess, sheriff, deputy sheriff, constable, deputy constable, or police officer, to clear an avenue to the door of any polling place which is obstructed in such a way as to prevent electors from approaching, or to maintain order and quell any disturbance, if such arises. No police officer in commission, whether in uniform or in citizen's clothes, shall be within one hundred feet of a polling place during the conduct of any primary or election, unless in the exercise of his privilege of voting, or for the purpose of serving warrants, or unless called upon to preserve the peace, as provided by this act. Provided, however, that such prohibition shall not apply to such police officers assigned to a police station or headquarters located in a building or on the premises where the polling place is located and such police officers must be within one hundred (100) feet of the polling place to enter and exit such police station or headquarters. And provided further, that in no event may any police officer unlawfully use or practice any intimidation, threats, force or violence nor, in any manner, unduly influence or overawe any elector or prevent him from voting or restrain his freedom of choice, nor may any such police officer electioneer or directly or indirectly attempt to influence the election or electors while within one hundred (100) feet of a polling place as herein set forth. And provided further, that where polling places are located in buildings or on premises where a police station or headquarters are located, the polling place shall be located in a separate room.” (25 P.S. § 3047)
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Rhode Island
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Yes
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“The chiefs of police of cities and towns, and town sergeants of towns having no chief of police, shall detail a certain number of police officers to each polling place as may be requested by the local board. The police officers shall preserve order at each polling place and within two hundred (200) feet of the polling place. It shall be the duty of every police officer or other peace officer or town or police constable to arrest without warrant any person detected in the act of violating the provisions of this chapter, but no arrest shall be made without the approval of the warden.” (Gen.Laws 1956, § 17-19-21)
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South Carolina
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Yes, if summoned
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“No sheriff, deputy sheriff, policeman or other officers shall be allowed to come within the polling place except to vote unless summoned into it by a majority of the managers. On failure of any sheriff, deputy sheriff, policeman or other officer to comply with the provisions of the preceding sentence, the managers of election, or one of them, shall make affidavit against such sheriff, deputy sheriff, policeman or other officer for his arrest.” (Code 1976 § 7-13-160)
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South Dakota
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Yes, to enforce the law
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“Each election officer and all law enforcement officers shall remove materials in violation of § 12-18-3 and disobedient persons in violation of § 12-18-9.1 and arrest any person so interfering with the conduct of the election.” (SDCL § 12-18-9.2)
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Tennessee
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Yes, if requested
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“No police or other law enforcement officer may come nearer to the entrance to a polling place than ten feet (10′) or enter the polling place except at the request of the officer of elections or the county election commission or to make an arrest or to vote.” (T. C. A. § 2-7-103)
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Texas
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Not Specified
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Utah
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Yes, to enforce the law
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“A sheriff, deputy sheriff, or municipal law enforcement officer shall prevent the obstruction of the entrance to a polling place and may arrest an individual creating an obstruction.” (U.C.A. 1953 § 20A-3a-501)
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Vermont
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Not Specified
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Virginia
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Yes, if requested
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“The officers of election, with the consent of the chief law-enforcement officer for the county or city, may designate a law-enforcement officer who shall attend at the polling place and preserve order inside and outside the polling place. If no law-enforcement officer is in attendance, the officers of election may appoint, in writing, one or more persons specially, who shall have all the powers of a law-enforcement officer in the polling place and within the prohibited area prescribed by § 24.2-604.” (VA Code Ann. § 24.2-606)
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Washington
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Yes, to enforce the law
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“During the voting period that begins eighteen days before and ends the day of a special election, general election, or primary, no person may:
(a) Within a voting center:
(i) Suggest or persuade or attempt to suggest or persuade any voter to vote for or against any candidate or ballot measure;
(ii) Circulate cards or handbills of any kind;
(iii) Solicit signatures to any kind of petition; or
(iv) Engage in any practice which interferes with the freedom of voters to exercise their franchise or disrupts the administration of the voting center;
(b) Obstruct the doors or entries to a building in which a voting center or ballot drop location is located or prevent free access to and from any voting center or ballot drop location.
(2) Any sheriff, deputy sheriff, or municipal law enforcement officer shall stop the prohibited activity and may arrest any person engaging in the prohibited activity.” (West's RCWA 29A.84.510)
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West Virginia
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Yes, to enforce the law
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“The commissioners of election shall preserve order at, and in the vicinity of, the polls, and keep the way to the polls open and free from obstruction, and may direct disorderly persons to be removed therefrom, and, if necessary and proper, to be taken and held in custody until sunrise of the next day, or for any shorter time, which may be done by any sheriff or constable or other person or persons designated by the commissioners of election.” (W. Va. Code, § 3-1-38)
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Wisconsin
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Yes
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“The chief of police shall station a police officer at polling places designated by the municipal board of election commissioners for each election.” (W.S.A. 7.22)
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Wyoming
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Not Specified
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