Exclusive: Hegseth directs Defense Dept. to fight foreigners who "meddle" in U.S. elections

Axios ^ | September 28, 2026 | Marc Caputo, Brittany Gibson

[4Runner]

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has assigned personnel to use "advanced intelligence and cyber capabilities to identify, disrupt, and neutralize foreign interference" in the upcoming elections, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The threat of foreign election interference has been a biennial U.S. concern for the past decade. This effort will use the most advanced artificial intelligence capabilities to date, officials said.

Hegseth's order does not direct military personnel to the polls, but President Trump has refused to rule out that possibility, heightening concern from Democrats and administration critics.

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TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; US: District of Columbia
KEYWORDS:

[4Runner]

God bless that man. He and Tom Homan are all we've got left.

[Fury]

Hegseth's order does not direct military personnel to the polls…

LOL. To do… what?

Axios going for clicks I guess.

[Shady]

The Uniparty is really, really mad about this.

[equaviator]

Sir, yes SIR!

[Lx]

Funny how the only time the election is being hacked is when Trump sycophants control everything. I guess the dems forgot to cheat in 2024. Oops.

So, they’re just going to turn Palantir loose? I’m sure this will be fine.

[Candor7]

You go Pete! Why should Iran have a vote ?

[Salman]

Defense Department?

What was the name of that department again?

[Theophilus]

• An unverified voter (ID, Reg, citizenship) is fraudulent
• An unverified ballot (mailed, harvested, late, recycled) is fraudulent
• An unverified machine (blackbox, remote operated, no paper trace, foreign HW/SW) is fraudulent.

[C210N]

For the record, there is literally another thread on the DOW memo from Hegseth, listed in 'Breaking News'.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth Signs Directive to Defend 2026 Elections From Foreign Threats

That thread links directly to the Department of War.

[bert]

The Axios error means the entire article has no credibility.

[USCG SimTech]

Illegal foreign invaders, incorrectly labeled illegal immigrants, are foreign government threats to the election system.

Set up activated reservists at every, single polling location, drop boxes (state run and USPS), certain post offices. Stand the watch, 24/7, be armed and jacketed as the left will try.

[for-q-clinton]

How about advanced Space Lasers blasting them anywhere in the world. Stop it at the source!

[Miami Rebel]

Dammit, stop citing inconvenient facts!

[Hey, Hegseth: we still have a war to win. Why not leave election integrity to DOJ?]

[mac_truck]

This memo from Hegseth follows a similar effort before the 2022 midterms under Trump's predecessor, Joe Biden, that directed U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency to "disrupt, deter, and degrade foreign adversaries' ability to interfere with and influence how U.S. citizens vote and how those votes are counted."

Oh...🤫

[stars & stripes forever]

I hope the military ballots will be counted this year. I believe he’s on that too.

[DUMBGRUNT]

And what is the workaround for the Posse Comitatus Act, a federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385) that stops federal military forces from performing civilian law enforcement duties unless specifically allowed by the Constitution or Congress.

And that would bring up “Fruit of the poisonous tree,” a legal doctrine that bans secondary evidence in court if it came from an illegal or unconstitutional police search or action.

This looks like political eyewash.

[bobbo666]

Drones? Oooh, will there be videos like the drug boats in the Gulf?