California Latinos take pride in casting ballots in person. ICE at polls could deter that

As in-person voting begins in California’s special election on redistricting, Gov. Gavin Newsom has repeatedly asserted that the Trump administration could send immigration agents to polling places in an attempt to intimidate voters and depress turnout.

The governor’s warnings, while unspecific, speak to what community leaders call real, palpable fears within some Latino communities that immigration agents could show up on Election Day. And ever since the Supreme Court greenlit using racial profiling in immigration stops, even U.S. citizens are scared they could be detained simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“You’re going to likely see members of our military in and around polling booths and voting places all across this country,” Newsom warned last week during a virtual event with former President Barack Obama in support of Proposition 50. “I would say the same about ICE and Border Patrol, and I say that soberly.”

Newsom has not provided any evidence to suggest that the Department of Homeland Security will deploy immigration agents to polling sites. But he pointed to the Los Angeles campaign launch event for Prop. 50, his plan to redraw the state’s congressional districts to favor Democrats, where federal immigration agents blocked supporters from entering the area and detained a nearby strawberry vendor.



https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/10/proposition-50-immigration-voting/