San Francisco

A House Judiciary Committee report led by Rep. Jim Jordan and Rep. Tom McClintock alleges that police and sheriff's departments in Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego rejected nearly 9,000 ICE detainer requests in recent years, with Los Angeles honoring roughly 0.1% of those it received. The report also cites ICE figures claiming California authorities released over 4,500 sought immigrants since January 2025, and highlights several high-profile killings involving previously deported individuals to argue sanctuary laws like the Trust Act and California Values Act endanger public safety.

Newsom's office has disputed similar claims previously, saying California has transferred thousands of inmates to ICE custody since 2019. Republicans are pushing the Shut Down Sanctuary Policies Act to bar such local restrictions.

Texas's Rio Grande Valley, a heavily Hispanic region that backed Trump in 2024 after decades as a Democratic stronghold, is showing signs of swinging back toward Democrats in the 2026 midterms. Reporting from the area finds frustration with aggressive ICE enforcement — including arrests of longtime residents without criminal records — compounding concerns over the cost of living and housing. Voters interviewed describe disillusionment with both parties rather than renewed partisan loyalty, suggesting a persistently volatile swing bloc.

Key races, including Texas's 15th and 34th Congressional Districts, illustrate Republicans distancing themselves from Trump's immigration policies while Democrats highlight ICE overreach and affordability as central campaign themes.

Orange County Dist. Atty. Todd Spitzer is campaigning for reelection with the slogan "#NoLAinOC," framing Los Angeles — and its progressive district attorney George Gascón — as a cautionary example of what he says Orange County must avoid. Critics, including his opponent Pete Hardin, a former O.C. prosecutor, argue the messaging distracts from problems within Spitzer's own office, including harassment lawsuits filed by staff prosecutors. Spitzer denies the slogan is an attack on L.A., citing his UCLA education and police career there. The slogan revives a long pattern of O.C. politicians contrasting the county favorably against L.A., even as data shows homelessness, crime, and population loss trends in Orange County are comparable to or worse than those in L.A. County.

San Francisco now offers free child care to four-person households earning up to $235,000 a year and subsidizes half the cost for those earning up to $325,000 — more than 3.5 times the U.S. median household income. City officials say the program is a response to an affordability crisis intensified by the AI boom, which has driven up housing and living costs. Rents in San Francisco are the highest among large U.S. cities, with median two-bedroom apartments near $4,640 and single-family homes topping $2 million. Mayor Daniel Lurie recently declared a "rent emergency." Officials hope the aid keeps middle-income families, often priced out despite solid professional salaries, from leaving the city.

California voters will decide in November whether to lift a 1988 ban that bars the state and most local governments from using public funds to finance political campaigns. Proposition 4 would authorize the state and most localities to establish public campaign financing systems for state and local races, similar to programs already used by seven charter cities including San Francisco, Berkeley and Oakland. Candidates would need to meet qualifying criteria, such as securing small-dollar donors or accepting spending caps, to receive funding as grants, matching funds or vouchers.

Supporters, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, the state Democratic Party and good-government groups, argue public financing counters the influence of big private money and could broaden the pool of candidates. Opponents, including Republican lawmakers and some newspaper editorial boards, say taxpayers shouldn't subsidize campaigns and criticize the measure for lacking enforcement specifics, since it exempts the state's campaign finance watchdog from overseeing local programs. Voters rejected similar measures in 2000 and 2010, and recent polling shows continued public skepticism toward Prop. 4.