Federal election monitors have been deployed to Davidson County, Knox County, and Shelby County, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee, which confirmed Tennessee is included in the Trump administration’s effort to send monitors to all 50 states.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the three Tennessee counties are part of the civil rights division’s effort to deploy about 1,000 election monitors across all 50 states. The three Tennessee counties named in the press release are home to Nashville, Knoxville, and Memphis.
“Election integrity has been one of the top priorities for this Administration and this Division,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who leads DOJ’s civil rights division.
Dhillon stated, “I am very proud we are deploying the largest monitoring effort in DOJ history, and pursuing transparency for elections in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner.”
In a social media post, Dhillon also urged members of the public to report issues to her office.
Happy Election Day! @CivilRights is sending 1,000+ monitors & observers to all 50 states to help ensure a free & fair election. Every American’s vote should count. If you see any issue, report it to your local election officials or the Division at 1-800-253-3931 or [email protected].…
— AAGHarmeetDhillon (@AAGDhillon) November 3, 2026
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee first confirmed last week that it was coordinating with the DOJ Civil Rights Division ahead of Election Day, when Attorney Mike Dunavant said his office was working to ensure voting rights were respected.
“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference, intimidation, or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud,” stated Dunavant. “The Department of Justice will always act appropriately to protect the integrity of the election process.”
The news comes on the heels of six foreign nationals accused of illegally voting in federal elections held in Tennessee. The accused are reported to originate from Iraq, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, France, and Honduras, and all but one were reported to be in the country legally when they are alleged to have illegally participated in American elections.
Across the country, the DOJ on Monday announced that 239 individuals have been charged with offenses related to voter fraud since President Donald Trump reentered the White House. A total of 195 have been charged with illegal voting across 25 states within the last nine weeks, while 63 face charges including fraudulent registration and other election-related offenses.
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Vote Here” by Lorie Shaull. CC BY 2.0.
