California Braces as ICE Arrests Climb Before the Midterms

California Braces as ICE Arrests Climb Before the Midterms

Dozens detained in a matter of days

In the weeks before the November 3 midterm elections, immigrant advocates and local media across California are reporting a sharp rise in arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. On the Central Coast, nearly 100 people were reported arrested in the tri-county area of Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties since Monday, October 5, including at least 63 in Santa Barbara County alone, with more than a dozen taken each day from Monday through Thursday in Santa Maria and Lompoc.

A 45-day operation moving north

According to the Washington Examiner, which first reported the plan on October 7 citing unnamed sources, the push is known internally as "Operation Safe California." It began several days earlier around San Diego, staffed by officers from San Diego plus personnel drawn from the Los Angeles and San Francisco field offices, and is expected to last at least 45 days, working north through Los Angeles toward San Francisco by November — meaning it would still be active when voters go to the polls.

"Go after anybody," sources say

The sources told the Examiner that field agents were ordered to arrest any unauthorized immigrants they encounter, regardless of criminal history, with one source texting that "management want numbers." The Department of Homeland Security would neither confirm nor deny the operation, saying ICE does not discuss enforcement operations for the safety of its personnel, while pointing to recent arrests of convicted offenders.

Los Angeles and the Valley feel the surge

In Southern California, at least 45 people — and by some counts as many as 80 — were arrested across the region since Monday, sending defense groups scrambling to monitor activity. In Fresno and Madera counties, roughly two dozen people were detained over Monday and Tuesday, largely at traffic stops, including a van carrying workers from Selma to Bakersfield; by later in the week, watch groups put the Fresno-area total above 70. Advocates say agents are using roving patrols near work sites and Latino neighborhoods rather than warrant-based targeted arrests. In Santa Barbara County, 805 UndocuFund had logged about 1,314 immigration-related arrests since January 2025 as of October 19, up from 1,168 in September, with hotline call volume tripling in early October from summer levels.

Sacramento calls it fear, Washington calls it duty

Governor Gavin Newsom blasted the raids as a "campaign of fear," accusing the White House of using mass deportations to terrify diverse communities out of voting legally, and Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas said the raids were about fear, not public safety. A DHS spokesperson called Newsom's comments a "reckless smear" and another false narrative demonizing ICE officers, insisting the department enforces the law every day nationwide, including in California.

Whether the Surge Cools After Election Day

California congressional representatives have written to acting ICE Director David Venturella demanding answers by October 30 about the surge that began in Central California on October 5. The California push coincides with a reported October 6 nationwide directive, described to the press by two sources, telling agents to add about 1,000 arrests a day and return to a goal of 3,000 daily arrests, or roughly 19,000 a week; DHS says there are "NO quotas." Whether enforcement eases after ballots are cast — and how courts handle fresh challenges, including California's 100th lawsuit against the administration over courthouse arrests — will shape the weeks after November 3. In Fresno, the City Council voted 5-1 on October 22 to approve a $1 million legal fund for detained residents.