Questions arise on military in election

WASHINGTON — It’s a question Americans are unaccustomed to considering in a presidential election campaign: Could voting, votecounting or the post-vote reaction become so chaotic that the U.S. military would intervene?

The answer is yes, but only inan extreme case. Civil order is left largely to civilian police. But there is an obscure law, the Insurrection Act, that theoretically could thrust the active-duty military into a police-like role. And governors have the ability to use the National Guard in state emergencies if needed.

The potential use of troops, either active duty orNationalGuard, at the polls or in post-election unrest has been discussed by governors and military leaders. The possibilities arise as President Donald Trump asserts without evidence that mail-in balloting will create election fraud and suggests that he might not accept an election loss.

Why wouldn’t the military get involved?

Civilian control of the military is a bedrock principle of American democracy. Itmeans thatmenand women in uniform answer to civilian leaders like the secretary of defense, and they stay apart from politics. They pledge their loyalty to the Constitution and the nation’s laws, not to a political party or a president.

Gen. Mark Milley, who as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is the nation’s top military officer, has told Congress the military is committed to staying apolitical and steering clear of any election role.

“In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections, by law U.S. courts and the U.S. Congress are required to resolve any disputes, not the U.S. military,” he said in written answers to questions from two Democratic members of the House Armed Service Committee. “I foresee no role for the U.S. armed forces in this process.”

What could the National Guard do?

National Guard units are in every state and are controlled by each governor, not the federal government.

Governors routinely mobilize their Guard members for emergencies, such as natural disasters, and they can use them to help enforce the lawduring events such as riots.

The National Guard Bureau has designated military police units in two states to serve as rapid reaction forces to respond quickly if a governor seeks help from other states to control civil unrest.

The president has the authority to federalize the Guard for use in a domestic emergency, but there are questions about whether a state’s governor can try to block such a move.

What about the Insurrection Act?

The president has the authority under the Insurrection Act of 1807 to dispatch active-duty military in states that are unable to put down an insurrection or are defying federal law. Under the law, the president can activate troops without a governor’s approval as long as specific conditions are met, such as if the violence is interfering with the execution of laws there.

Would potential post-election violence amount to an insurrection? That might be open to debate. It’s not clear whether states could legally block any presidential use of the Insurrection Act.

What about security at the polls?

Several state leaders, including New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, have raised the possibility of using Guard troops for security at the polls. Others used the Guard during primary elections. At times they wore civilian clothes and filled in for pollworkers whowere absent because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But they must stay out of the polling process.