Early voting surges in areas reporting increased ICE enforcement

Voters in several U.S. cities are casting ballots at higher rates despite a recent increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity. The rise in enforcement operations has occurred in the weeks leading up to the midterm elections. Local officials and community groups have reported seeing more agents on the streets in recent months.

In Dover, New Jersey, Councilwoman Sandra Wittner received messages from neighbors about a group of agents gathering outside a Walgreens on Wednesday morning. She described the situation as causing apprehension and fear among residents. Wittner noted that people felt unsafe and were unsure if a large-scale detention was about to take place. The city is part of a wider pattern of activity reported in north New Jersey.

Wendy Weiser, a legal scholar at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School, believes the administration’s tactics are designed to intimidate voters. She stated that the deployments appear targeted at specific communities. However, she argues that the strategy is not achieving its goal. Weiser said there are huge surges in participation in communities of color and Latino communities that have been targeted by the agency.

A volunteer in New York City who monitors enforcement actions described the recent operations as cluster raids. She said agents are moving from one location to the next in large groups. The volunteer, who asked not to be named to avoid retaliation, reported that her group documents these scenes and reminds detained individuals of their rights. She noted that the uptick in activity has been present since the summer.

In Portland, Oregon, local reporting indicates that ICE activity has picked up noticeably compared to the summer months. Reporter Troy Brynelson said the operations seem to be concentrated in commercial areas. He described the increase as a clear change from the previous months. Similar reports have come from rural Illinois, Detroit, and California throughout October.

Juan Proaño of the League of United Latin American Citizens expressed concern about the timing of the raids. He explained that the issue is not necessarily agents at the polling station itself, but agents at the perimeter. He warned that mass enforcement actions, combined with social media coverage, could dissuade people from going out to vote. An official in the office of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirmed the city has noted a surge in activity, though the official was not authorized to speak publicly.

The Department of Homeland Security responded to a request for comment by stating that its agents uphold immigration laws in all 50 states, seven days a week. The agency did not provide specific numbers on recent operations. The lack of timely public information from the department has made it difficult for journalists and local leaders to track the exact scale of the crackdowns as they happen.