Sponsors (2)
The bill aims to make Federal elections safer by banning most firearms at polling places and adding enforcement tools while preserving limited official exemptions, but it creates uncertainty and the potential for criminalization and enforcement costs for lawful gun owners and nearby residents.
Voters and poll workers are less likely to encounter firearms at polling places, reducing the risk of intimidation, threats, or violence during Federal elections.
The law creates clear federal criminal penalties for unlawful armed presence at election sites, giving prosecutors a concrete tool to deter and punish violations.
Narrow exemptions for on‑duty law enforcement and authorized security permit official security functions to continue while enforcing the ban.
People who legally keep firearms in vehicles near polling places or who are on private property within the 100‑yard zone may face arrest or legal uncertainty (including limits on lawful self‑defense) because the exemptions and the geographic scope can be unclear in practice.
Expanding federal criminal enforcement around polling sites may increase prosecutions, potential fines or jail time for violators, and impose costs on individuals and federal court resources.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Introduced March 17, 2026 by Christopher Murphy · Last progress March 17, 2026
Makes it a federal crime to knowingly possess a firearm at or within 100 yards of a federal election site, with narrow exceptions for on-duty law enforcement, authorized private security, and firearms kept in vehicles when not removed or brandished. Establishes criminal penalties (up to 1 year in prison or fine for unauthorized possession, up to 5 years if the firearm is possessed with intent to commit a crime) and applies existing federal homicide and attempt/conspiracy penalties to killings that occur in connection with violations or attacks on federal election sites.