What to Do on Election Day¶

This page is your practical, step-by-step guide for Election Day 2026. It covers what to prepare beforehand, what to do if something goes wrong, and where to report problems. Save it, print it, or share it.

Before Election Day¶

Start preparing now — do not wait until November.

Know your polling place. Verify your polling location at vote.org/polling-place-locator or through your state/county election office website.
Know your state's voter ID requirements. Rules vary by state. Check vote.org/voter-id-laws or your secretary of state's website.
Bring a charged phone with a camera. You may need to document what you see.

Save these numbers in your phone:

Contact	Number
Election Protection Hotline	866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)
Spanish language	888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682)
Asian languages	888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683)
Arabic language	844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287)

Save your local election board's phone number. Find it through your state's secretary of state website or your county election office.
Know your rights. Read Your Rights at the Polling Place before you go.
Tell a friend. Let someone know when you plan to vote and ask them to check in with you afterward.

If You See Armed Federal Agents at Your Polling Place¶

Follow this protocol. Each step matters.

1. Stay Calm and Vote¶

Your right to vote is protected by federal law. Do not let anyone's presence stop you from casting your ballot. Get in line, stay in line, and vote.

2. Document What You See¶

From a safe distance, record the following:

What to document	Why it matters
Number of agents	Establishes the scale of the deployment
Are they armed? What weapons or tactical gear?	Directly relevant to 18 U.S.C. § 592 ("troops or armed men")
What agency? Look for uniforms, badges, vehicle markings (ICE, CBP, FBI, etc.)	Identifies whether they are federal civil servants covered by the statute
Where are they positioned? At the entrance? Inside? In the parking lot? How far from the polls?	"At any place where an election is held" is the statutory language
Are they interacting with voters? Questioning anyone? Checking IDs?	Relevant to VRA § 11(b) intimidation analysis
Time and location	Essential for any legal filing

Take photos or video from a safe distance if you can do so without confrontation. Timestamped images are powerful evidence.

3. Report Immediately¶

Call at least two of these:

Election Protection Hotline: 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683) — Staffed by attorneys and trained volunteers who can provide real-time guidance and connect you with legal resources.
Your local election official — The person or office that runs your polling place. They have authority over what happens at the polls and can escalate to state officials.
Your state secretary of state's office — The chief election official for your state. Find their election-day hotline through your state guide (Section 5: Election Security Infrastructure).

4. What NOT to Do¶

Do NOT physically confront agents. Your safety comes first. Document and report — let the legal system respond.
Do NOT abandon your place in line. If you leave, you may not get to vote. Stay and exercise your right.
Do NOT assume it is hopeless. Courts can and have issued emergency orders within hours on Election Day. Your report may be the evidence that triggers an emergency motion.

5. If You Are a Poll Worker¶

Refer to your chain of command. If your city has adopted a protection ordinance, law enforcement at your polling place operates under the direction of the precinct election judge and city clerk.
Reassure voters. Tell people in line that they have the right to vote and that you are working to address the situation.
Contact your election office. Report the presence of agents through your official channels.

Reporting Directory¶

National Hotlines¶

Organization	Phone	What they do
Election Protection (Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law)	866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)	Real-time legal guidance, volunteer dispatch, incident documentation
Election Protection — Spanish	888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682)	Same services in Spanish
Election Protection — Asian languages	888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683)	Same services in Asian languages
Election Protection — Arabic	844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287)	Same services in Arabic

National Organizations¶

Organization	What they do
ACLU (aclu.org/know-your-rights/voting)	Know Your Rights resources, legal action
Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law (lawyerscommittee.org)	Operates Election Protection; legal advocacy
Common Cause (commoncause.org)	Nonpartisan election monitoring
League of Women Voters (lwv.org)	Voter education, election observation
NAACP (naacp.org)	Civil rights advocacy, voter protection

Research note: Verify before Election Day

This directory reflects major national election protection organizations. Before Election Day 2026:

Verify all phone numbers are operational for the 2026 cycle
Check for new hotlines established by state or national organizations
Visit 866ourvote.org for the most current Election Protection information
Check your state guide Section 4 (coalition directory) and Section 5 (election security infrastructure) for state-specific contacts

State-Specific Contacts¶

Each state guide includes:

Section 4: Coalition Directory — Specific organizations, phone numbers, and email addresses for advocacy partners in your state
Section 5: Election Security Infrastructure — Key contacts for state election officials, election complaint hotlines, and state-level election protection coalitions

Find your state guide

For Poll Watchers and Election Observers¶

What is a poll watcher?¶

Poll watchers (also called election observers or challengers) are individuals authorized by a candidate, party, or nonpartisan organization to observe the election process. They serve an important democratic function but must operate within clear legal boundaries.

How to become a poll watcher¶

Poll watcher rules vary significantly by state. In general:

Most states require poll watchers to be registered by a political party, candidate, or authorized organization
Some states require advance registration with the local election office
Poll watchers typically must have credentials or identification
Training is usually required or strongly recommended

Check your state guide for your state's specific requirements, or contact your local election office.

What poll watchers can and cannot do¶

Poll watchers CAN	Poll watchers CANNOT
Observe the voting process from a designated area	Interact with voters or interfere with voting
Take notes on what they observe	Challenge voters' eligibility in most states (rules vary)
Report irregularities to election officials	Touch ballots, voting machines, or election materials
Be present during ballot counting in most states	Campaign, wear campaign materials, or distribute literature
Report their observations to their authorizing organization	Photograph voters or their ballots (rules vary by state)

For Community Organizers¶

Setting Up a Rapid-Response Network¶

If you are organizing election protection efforts in your community, consider building a rapid-response network before Election Day:

Communication infrastructure:

Establish a communication chain (phone tree, group chat, or encrypted messaging group) among your volunteers
Designate a coordinator for each polling place cluster
Identify a legal contact who can receive reports and coordinate with attorneys

Pre-positioned observers:

Recruit and train volunteers to observe high-risk polling locations
Prioritize polling places in neighborhoods with high concentrations of Latino, immigrant, and mixed-status family voters
Ensure observers know the documentation protocol (Step 2 above)

Legal coordination:

Connect with the Election Protection hotline in advance — they coordinate volunteer deployment nationally
Identify local attorneys willing to be on-call on Election Day
If your state has a pre-existing protection ordinance, ensure observers know its provisions
If attorneys in your network have prepared emergency motions, ensure they are ready to file on short notice

Supplies for observers:

Charged phones with cameras
Printed copies of key phone numbers
Printed copies of Your Rights at the Polling Place
Notebooks and pens (backup to phones)
The address and precinct number of their assigned polling place

Connect with existing infrastructure

The Election Protection coalition coordinates a nationwide network of volunteer attorneys, law students, and trained volunteers every election cycle. Rather than building a parallel system, consider integrating your efforts with theirs. Contact them through 866ourvote.org.

After Election Day¶

Your work does not end when the polls close.

Report what happened. Even if nothing went wrong at your polling place, report your observations to the Election Protection hotline and your local election protection organizations. Complete reports — including reports of no federal agent presence — are valuable.
Preserve your documentation. If you took photos, video, or notes, save them in their original format with metadata intact. They may be important for future legal action.
Share your experience. Contact the organizations in your state guide's coalition directory. Your testimony may be valuable for:
- Future litigation seeking to prevent repeat deployments
- Legislative efforts to strengthen election protections
- Academic research on voter intimidation
- Community organizing in future election cycles
Stay engaged. Election protection is not a one-day effort. The legal infrastructure built for 2026 will be needed in 2028 and beyond.