ICE Intensifies Immigration Arrests Ahead of Midterm Elections

WHO:

CNN - Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leadership, President Trump, Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar

Gothamist - ICE agents

WHAT:

CNN - ICE agents were instructed to increase daily immigration arrests by 1,000, returning to a goal of 3,000 daily arrests.

CNN - ICE was taking around 2,000 people into custody daily on average prior to the directive.

CNN - ICE aims to reach 19,000 arrests per week.

CNN - In August, ICE arrested around 51,000 people, setting a new monthly high for the Trump administration.

CNN - The previous high was over 46,000 arrests in July.

CNN - A Homeland Security spokesperson stated there are “NO quotas on arrests.”

CNN - Secretary Mullin stated, “Our focus is to go after the worst of the worst, but when we make contact with an illegal, regardless of how many years you’ve been here, we are obligated by statute to at that point arrest you.”

CNN - ICE is seeking contractors to build temporary facilities to alleviate strain at existing facilities.

WHERE:

CNN - ICE operations are nationwide, with specific mention of 26 Federal Plaza in Lower Manhattan for an enforcement operation.

WHEN:

Gothamist - An ICE agent made an arrest on June 25, 2025, during an enforcement removal operation.

WHY:

CNN - The directive to increase arrests is part of the Trump administration's ongoing immigration crackdown and is politically motivated ahead of the midterm elections.

CNN - Some Republicans have criticized the administration’s tactics, particularly the arrest of undocumented immigrants without criminal records.

HOW:

CNN - ICE has adjusted operations, including vehicle stops, requiring officers to complete training and use vehicles equipped with lights and sirens for stops.

CNN - The agency is seeking to expand holding space at agency offices due to an “exceptionally high operational tempo with increased arrests.”

(UPDATED October 8, 2026 05:06 UTC)

President Trump, along with Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Florida Representative Maria Elvira Salazar, has directed Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, to ramp up daily immigration arrests by 1,000, aiming to reach a total of 3,000 arrests each day. This comes after ICE set a new monthly high of around 51,000 arrests in August, surpassing the previous record of over 46,000 in July, as the agency seeks to manage an exceptionally high operational tempo and expand holding space at its offices. While a Homeland Security spokesperson insists there are no quotas on arrests, some Republicans have voiced concerns over the tactics being used, particularly regarding the arrest of undocumented immigrants without criminal records.