Can ICE arrest you at a polling place? California issues warning to immigration agents

California Governor, Democrat Gavin Newsom, responded this Tuesday to threats from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) against those who vote without authorization, warning that he will locate, detain, and prosecute any agent who shows up without authorization at polling places to interfere in the elections.

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Tensions between California and the administration of President Donald Trump over alleged electoral fraud have increased in recent weeks after the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit to set aside more than 20,000 mail-in ballots from voters who, according to the federal government, are likely not citizens.

Several courts, including the Supreme Court, rejected the Trump Administration's requests.

Newsom deployed teams of election lawyers, as well as more than 1,000 observers at key polling places. But tension remains between the two parties.

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"If you vote illegally, we will find you. We will locate you, we will arrest you, and we will prosecute you," ICE warned this Tuesday in a post on its X account.

The Governor of California responded to the message by saying: "If (federal agents) show up illegally at polling places, we will find them. We will locate them, we will arrest them, and we will prosecute them. There will be no escape."

The warning joins one made this Monday, when the Democrat noted that anyone who interferes in the state's electoral process or tampers with ballots will be prosecuted for a state felony and will not be able to receive a pardon from President Trump.

The Governor of California emphasized that he recently enacted a series of laws that give state prosecutors new tools to ensure that people who interfere in elections can be charged, even if they work on behalf of the federal government.

"It doesn't matter who gave the order: if you try to interfere in California's elections, California will come after you," Newsom stated.

California, the most populous state in the country with the highest number of registered voters—more than 23 million—has three key races for U.S. House of Representatives seats that are currently held by Republicans and could flip to the Democrats. EFE