Pentagon ordered to fight 'foreign interference' in US elections after Labour activists campaigned against Donald Trump
Pentagon personnel have been directed to deploy "advanced intelligence and cyber capabilities to identify, disrupt, and neutralise foreign interference" ahead of the upcoming US midterm elections.
The memo, which Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth authorised, commits the Department of Defence to leveraging its most sophisticated artificial intelligence tools yet in the fight against electoral meddling.
It prioritises cyber and intelligence resources under US Cyber Command, tasks the Defence Intelligence Enterprise with gathering information on foreign electoral threats, and launches joint operations with the Department of Homeland Security to counter cyber attacks from overseas actors.
The order draws on President Trump's 2025 executive order on election integrity and was partly shaped by his July speech alleging Chinese interference in the 2020 contest, a claim Beijing has denied.
The Pentagon directive comes amid a row over alleged British meddling in American politics.
During the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump's campaign lodged a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission against the Labour Party, alleging "blatant foreign interference" on behalf of the Harris-Walz ticket.
The complaint pointed to media coverage of contacts between Labour figures and the Harris campaign, as well as volunteering efforts by party-linked individuals who had travelled to the United States.
Mr Trump's team argued that these activities amounted to unlawful foreign contributions, drawing a parallel with a 2016 case in which the Australian Labour Party sent delegates to assist Bernie Sanders' campaign and was subsequently fined $14,500 (£10,950).
Labour officials maintained that activists who campaigned in the US did so in a personal capacity, and that the party neither organised nor funded their trips.
Former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer added that Labour volunteers had participated in American elections for years and that cross-party contacts between British and US political figures were entirely routine.
The row appeared to stem from a LinkedIn post by Labour's head of operations, Sofia Patel, inviting people to travel to the US and offering to arrange accommodation.
The post, which indicated nearly 100 people had already signed up, was subsequently removed.
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Under FEC regulations, foreign nationals may volunteer on campaigns as long as they receive no compensation.
Former Labour activist Matthew McGregor, who volunteered for Barack Obama in 2008, dismissed the allegations as "nothing more than a political stunt".
Despite the Pentagon's renewed focus on foreign threats, the Trump administration's own budget proposals have undermined election security efforts.
The administration proposed cuts to the CISA division at DHS, which is primarily responsible for safeguarding elections, while delaying staffing at other critical posts.
Instead, officials redirected considerable resources to investigating voter fraud in previous contests.
In January, the FBI seized voting machines from Fulton County, Georgia.
The Justice Department also asked 30 state election offices to preserve records from the 2024 race.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said federal, state and local authorities were operating "in lockstep" with Cyber Command and defence intelligence teams to prevent foreign interference.
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