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By Steve Mollman

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The Democratic National Committee (DNC) approved resolutions on Saturday addressing immigration enforcement, with members backing a measure urging lawmakers to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while also more strongly approving a separate proposal calling for reforms to the agency.

The vote, conducted during the DNC's summer meeting in Austin, Texas, highlights ongoing internal debates within the Democratic Party over how to approach immigration policy ahead of this year's midterm elections as President Donald Trump expands deportation efforts.

In July, border czar Tom Homan said ICE was on schedule to set arrest records for a second consecutive month, describing the agency's current enforcement push as "deportation-maxxing."

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The resolution calls on Democratic members of Congress to enact legislation dissolving ICE and winding down the immigration detention system. It also calls for restricting Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding unless certain enforcement activities end, including workplace raids, mass roundups, arrests at courthouses, arrests at ICE check-ins, enforcement actions near schools and houses of worship, and other operations, as well as terminating contracts with private detention providers.

DNC chair Ken Martin emphasized that official party platforms are established every four years at the national convention, while noting that Democrats remain united in opposing the administration's current approach to border and immigration enforcement.

"Our official party positions are determined at the convention every four years in our platform," Martin said in a statement to Newsweek. "However, clearly, the one thing that unites Democrats, regardless of their position on reform versus abolish or whatever other ways to change what's happening, is people believe that what ICE is doing right now and CBP [U.S. Customs and Border Protection] and the federal government should stop. There has to be a better way."

The White House sharply criticized the resolution calling for ICE's abolition

"Extreme radical Democrats want to abolish ICE and defund the police," White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis told Newsweek. "Instead of trying to abolish ICE, Democrats should be thanking ICE law enforcement officers for putting their lives on the line to arrest and remove murderers, rapists, pedophiles, and gang members from American communities. Many of these criminals were released from jails by Democrat radical politicians. President Trump's efforts to remove criminal illegal aliens from American communities is already delivering results including the lowest murder rate in 125 years."

Newsweek reached out to ICE for comment.

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What the DNC Approved

The resolution details multiple steps regarding immigration enforcement, including:

• Passing federal legislation to abolish ICE.
• Concluding operations for the agency and the broader detention system.
• Conditioning Department of Homeland Security appropriations on reducing detention operations.
• Closing detention facilities and terminating private prison contracts.
• Releasing immigration detainees except under limited circumstances.
• Expanding civil rights oversight and pursuing accountability for official misconduct.

The resolution argues that immigration detention is a civil rather than criminal matter and contends that detained immigrants should generally be allowed to pursue their cases while not being held in custody.

The non-binding vote does not alter official party platform policy for 2028, but it illustrates the distinct approaches favored by various activists and party officials heading into the midterms.

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Beyond ICE Reform

The vote reflects how rapidly the party's conversation around ICE has evolved.

Earlier this year, top congressional Democrats stopped short of calling for the agency's elimination while demanding significant reforms.

That position was echoed Sunday by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who told NBC's Meet the Press that Democrats are "committed to dramatically reforming ICE" and declined to endorse bringing a vote to abolish the agency.

Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, both of New York, released a list of proposed changes to ICE operations, including the banning of face coverings for immigration agents, requiring visible identification, restricting enforcement near schools and churches, expanding body-camera requirements and imposing additional use-of-force standards.

Jeffries reiterated that position Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press, saying Democrats are "committed to dramatically reforming ICE" rather than abolishing the agency. Asked whether he would bring a vote to abolish ICE to the House floor if Democrats regain control of the chamber, Jeffries instead called for "dramatic, bold, and transformational reform" and said ICE should face stricter oversight, including body-camera requirements and limits on enforcement activities.

Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California, by contrast, said on the same program that while he supports a secure border, he has long favored eliminating the agency. "I've always been for a secure border. But I've called for abolishing ICE," Khanna said.

Michele Johnson, a DNC member from Louisiana who proposed the measure to abolish ICE, told the Associated Press on Saturday that it’s time for Democrats to take a stand and pointed to the dissolution of ICE’s predecessor agency, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, as a precedent.

“I think one of the reasons why people are not trusting the party is because we sound so academic,” she said. “We sound focus group tested, we sound poll tested because we’re worried about saying the wrong thing or doing the wrong thing and not just like, just stand on business, like take a position.”

However, DNC member Yvonne Reeves-Chong voted against the measure, telling the AP it would only gain support from a part of the party’s base, while drawing “fire” from another group of voters.

“I would strongly suggest we get to the business of winning races so we can make the policies that make a difference,” she said.

The resolution comes as anti-ICE rhetoric has become increasingly common in Democratic primaries across the country, particularly in races where immigration enforcement operations have become high-profile political issues.

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Immigration vs. Economy

While many voters express unease with ICE’s conduct and the agency has become a potent flashpoint in Democratic primaries, polling consistently shows that voters remain more focused on the economy, inflation and the cost of living than on immigration.

Public anger over ICE tactics may energize Democratic primary voters and immigrant communities as Democrats seek to reclaim the House and Senate in November, but surveys suggest affordability remains the more dominant concern and that Republicans retain an advantage on immigration and border security, raising questions about whether Democrats risk emphasizing an issue where they are less competitive heading into the general election.

A May 2026 Marquette Law School national survey asked U.S. adults to name the most important issue facing the country.

Inflation and cost of living ranked first at 37 percent, followed by the economy at 19 percent, while immigration and border security trailed far behind at 6 percent. The same poll, conducted with a margin of error of roughly 3 to 4 percentage points, also measured which party voters trust more on key issues. Republicans led Democrats by 19 percentage points on immigration and border security, while Democrats held smaller advantages on inflation and the broader economy.

The Marquette survey also highlights the strategic tension for Democrats. While Trump’s overall approval rating stood at 38 percent, with 62 percent disapproving, his strongest issue remained border security, where 48 percent approved and 52 percent disapproved. On immigration more broadly, he remained underwater but closer to parity, with 44 percent approval and 56 percent disapproval. That suggests that even as his overall standing weakens, immigration remains one of his comparatively strongest political areas.

There is also evidence that ICE itself is still unpopular. A January Marquette poll found 40 percent of adults approved of ICE’s job performance and 60 percent disapproved, with Republicans approving and Democrats and independents opposed. The agency's reputation suffered after federal immigration agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge.

Sarah Pierce, director of social policy at Third Way, previously told Newsweek that Democrats risk misjudging voter priorities if immigration dominates their messaging, but cautioned against sidelining the issue altogether.

“Immigration should not be Democrats’ first or only message to voters because it is not their top concern,” she said, adding that “ignoring it is also a mistake.”

Pierce said Democrats “cannot allow Republicans to be the only party offering a vision” on immigration, arguing that criticism of what she described as a “reckless and deadly approach to enforcement” must be paired with “a forward-looking plan for smart, targeted immigration enforcement that keeps communities safe.”

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Political Risks Ahead

The debate underscores strategic divisions within the Democratic Party. While progressive advocates argue that aggressive immigration enforcement operations are untenable, some strategists warn that centering campaigns heavily on abolishing ICE could detract from other voter priorities or hand advantages to Republicans on national security issues.

Supporters of the resolution argue that structural changes are necessary to reform an immigration system they view as fundamentally flawed. Critics maintain that eliminating the agency would impair federal enforcement capabilities.

As the Trump administration continues its expanded deportation initiatives, the DNC's action is expected to heighten scrutiny on how individual Democratic candidates position themselves on immigration enforcement.

Contact Newsweek editor for this story: Anthony Murray.

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