Texas voters shift to Democrats as immigration ranks among top issues

Congress could reclaim around $240 billion as lawmakers eye stricter ICE oversight

Texas voters shifted to Democrats in the 2026 midterms, electing Gina Hinojosa as the state’s first Latina Democratic governor and giving Texas its first Democratic U.S. senator in nearly 40 years. The Texas House of Representatives flipped. Counties along the U.S.-Mexico border that supported Trump in 2024 moved Democratic, and NPR reporter Jasmine Garsd reported that exit polling placed immigration policy among the election’s top issues.

Texas election produces statewide shifts

In the days before the midterms, hundreds of people left “I voted” stickers on a memorial for Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Houston man killed by federal immigration agents earlier in the year. His son, Ronaldo Salgado, told NPR, “The fact that people were thinking of my dad and thinking of other immigrants — that just means the world to me.”

Salgado said, “Unfortunately, Texas has become like the epicenter of ICE enforcement and like gross violence against immigrants.” He added, “Well, the voters have spoken — incoming lawmakers now have a duty to listen to us.”

Artemio Muñiz of the Texas Federation of Hispanic Republicans told NPR, “with these anti-immigrant-type policies, I think the Hispanic community got fed up.” He said, “I think the message is clear from the Texas Hispanic community that the only acceptable or effective Hispanic outreach from the Republican Party in Texas is one that includes a reasonable solution for immigration.” He suggested that a solution include secured borders and a legal pathway for undocumented immigrants who had lived in the United States for decades.

Separate short political items in NPR’s coverage said a judge had blocked construction of Trump’s arch at the 11th hour and described the incoming class of U.S. senators as full of historic firsts.

Texas and Houston face calls to reduce ICE cooperation

Texas Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa now faces calls to end the state’s partnership with ICE. César Espinosa, executive director of the Houston-based advocacy organization FIEL, said, “That’s something that can happen on day one.” FIEL also wants Hinojosa and the Texas legislature to push for driver licenses for undocumented immigrants. Houston’s mayor is reducing his police department’s cooperation with ICE.

Congress weighs ICE funding and oversight

Nationwide, immigration advocates say they want ICE defunded or severely restricted. Murad Awawdeh of the New York Immigrant Coalition said, “We demand that the incoming Congress hold ICE accountable.”

NPR described ICE as the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency in the U.S. The report said Congress gave immigration enforcement broad latitude in 2025 and awarded ICE and Customs and Border Patrol around $240 billion in 2026. NPR said the funds were enough to run the mass-deportation operation for the remainder of Trump’s term. Congress could reclaim that money, and lawmakers were already considering more stringent oversight.

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., is set to become the next chair of the House Oversight Committee. On Election Day, his advice to Republicans was “Lawyer up.” Garcia has promised to examine several issues, including ICE accountability.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., likely will chair the House Homeland Security Committee. He said, “We have to rein ICE in because its illegal, out-of-control activities (have) killed individuals … assaulted individuals … have incarcerated individuals,” and, “That system has to have accountability for the men and women who work in it.” Thompson said he would like to require by law the use of body-worn cameras for federal immigration agents and a ban on agents wearing face coverings.

Naureen Shah of the ACLU said congressional oversight through subpoenas could change ICE’s behavior. “ICE has to be afraid,” she said. “They have to be afraid of losing their funding, they have to be afraid of being subpoenaed and asked extremely hard questions before a live audience of the American people.”

White House signals continued enforcement

President Trump remained an obstacle to congressional action. After the midterm results, Trump said he would welcome the nickname “Mr. Veto.”

NPR described Stephen Miller’s promotion as a possible indication of how the administration would carry immigration enforcement forward. On Friday, a few days after the election results, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller was promoted to chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles. NPR said Miller’s central government project has been immigration control and mass deportations. NPR also reported that Miller was considered the architect of the first Trump administration’s child separation policy and was deeply involved in turning large warehouses into immigration detention centers.

The day after the midterm elections, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin posted on X, “Deportations will continue.” Vice President JD Vance took to X to discuss the Republican Party’s losses. Vance said he believed the losses were due to voter concerns about the economy, inflation and the war with Iran, and he left immigration enforcement off that list. He said he was open to changing enforcement tactics by focusing more on businesses that hire undocumented workers, but he said immigration amnesty was not the solution.

Shah said ICE enforcement and the current state of the economy were inextricably linked. “What’s really clear is that the stories of life becoming harder for everyday Americans are actually also stories about ICE’s impact. People are afraid to take their kids to school, afraid to go to work. It impacts our schools, our teachers. It impacts the labor force when people aren’t showing up for their jobs. So Democrats have an opportunity through their oversight device to tell a story about how to make everyday life more affordable for all Americans.”

Detention expansion draws scrutiny and investor questions

NPR reported that the Trump administration had spent billions of dollars expanding ICE detention facilities, many of which had faced protests and criticism over conditions. NPR also reported a record number of deaths in detention since the start of Trump’s second term.

In another short report, neighbors said ICE had quietly used a warehouse as a detention facility all summer.

The day after the midterm election results, CoreCivic and GEO Group, the two major private detention-center companies that contract with ICE, held quarterly investor calls. Investors asked CoreCivic how the midterm results might affect ICE operations. CoreCivic President Lucibeth Mayberry said, “[ICE] have again began increasing enforcement activity. They have the secure funding to do so.” She added that the ICE administration should “move quickly” in purchasing new detention centers.