The Trump administration says it will maintain its mass deportation policy after midterm election losses, keeping immigration arrests and removals on course. Immigration ranked third among voters’ concerns, behind the economy and democracy. The White House has attributed the results chiefly to economic pressures, affordability and the war with Iran, rather than immigration enforcement.
White House and DHS stand by enforcement policy
The White House said the administration would not slow arrests and deportations of people it describes as “criminal illegal aliens.” Spokesperson Lauren Bis said Trump is the president who has pursued the strongest immigration enforcement. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would not back down or ease up, and would continue enforcing immigration laws and deporting people subject to removal.
Trump’s Friday nomination of Stephen Miller, a prominent hard-line immigration policy advocate, to serve as White House chief of staff was also seen as a sign that the administration has no plans to retreat on border and immigration policy. Miller helped shape Trump’s hard-line immigration agenda during both his first and second terms.
Vance raised the possibility of shifting priorities
After the election results, Vice President JD Vance said the administration could consider changes to its enforcement strategy, including focusing more attention on businesses that employ unauthorized workers. The administration later reaffirmed its existing approach, with no public indication that enforcement levels would change.
ICE has recently been given a target of about 2,700 arrests of immigrants without legal status per day, up from a previous goal of 2,000, according to people familiar with the agency’s instructions. Monthly first-time ICE detentions rose sharply after Trump returned to the White House in 2025. In several months of 2026, the total exceeded 20,000 and approached 40,000 at its peak.
During Trump’s first term, monthly totals were typically around 10,000 to 12,000 before falling after 2020. Under President Biden, monthly detentions climbed from about 2,000 in early 2021 to roughly 8,000 by late 2024.
Protests and voter shifts keep enforcement in focus
Enforcement operations this year have prompted anti-ICE protests in cities including Chicago, Minneapolis and Los Angeles. The deaths of two U.S. protesters, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, after immigration officers opened fire in Minneapolis have brought renewed attention to enforcement tactics and their consequences.
Exit polls ranked immigration as voters’ third most important issue in the midterms. In traditionally conservative states such as Texas, a shift among Latino voters toward Democrats helped the party secure a sizable advantage in congressional seats. U.S. officials have said the White House sees the losses as more closely tied to the economy, living costs and the war with Iran. The administration’s public position remains that it will continue its immigration policy, while ICE’s reported daily arrest target has increased.