ICE Deputy Director Resigns to Run for Congress in Ohio

Madison Sheahan, the deputy director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, announced on Thursday that she was resigning from her role to run for a House seat in Ohio.

In a video posted to X announcing her congressional campaign, Sheahan described herself as a “Trump conservative” who is “tired of watching my hard-working family, friends and neighbors pay more and get ignored.”

“Real change means real leadership, and I’ve done it before,” she said.

Sheahan, a 28-year-old Ohio native, is entering the race to fill the state’s 9th Congressional District, held by Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur.

Kaptur, a member of the House’s powerful Budget and Appropriations committees, has held the seat for more than 40 years and is so far running in the Democratic primary unchallenged.

Prior to joining ICE, Sheahan most recently served as secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.

Sheahan’s departure from ICE comes as the agency is under intense scrutiny for the multiple immigration officer-involved shootings over the past week, which have resulted in the death of 37-year-old U.S. citizen Renee Nicole Good and injuries to at least three people the Department of Homeland Security has accused of being in the country illegally.

“In less than one year at ICE, I’ve stopped more illegal immigration than Marcy Kaptur has in her 43 years in Washington,” Sheahan said in her campaign announcement video. “When the call came to help President Trump clean up the dangerous immigration mess as deputy director of ICE, I answered the call.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement that Sheahan “will be a great defender of freedom when she goes to Congress.”

The Republican primary in the 9th District is a crowded one, with five other registered candidates. Four-term state Rep. Derek Merrin is among the contenders, alongside self-described “independent-minded conservative” Alea Nadeem, nonprofit founder Anthony Campbell and first-term state Rep. Josh Williams.

In a statement to The Toledo Blade, Merrin’s campaign welcomed Sheahan to the race.

“It’s nice to see Ohio picking up a new resident,” a spokesperson for Merrin’s campaign told the outlet. “We hope she decides to stay in Ohio for the general election to vote for Derek to defeat Marcy Kaptur.”

Kaptur is one of 13 House Democrats who won a district also won by President Donald Trump in 2024, making her seat among the most vulnerable in this year’s midterms. Additionally, last year the Ohio Redistricting Commission unanimously approved a new gerrymandered map that is likely to give Republicans a built-in advantage in the district.

In a statement to the Blade, Kaptur’s campaign didn’t comment directly on Sheahan’s announcement, but acknowledged that Republicans were preparing to “fight through a messy primary” in a “district they gerrymandered against just this fall.”

“Voters are tired of the self-dealing corruption and culture of lawlessness they’ve seen over the last year,” the campaign added. “They want a leader focused on affordability and real results, and Marcy Kaptur consistently works across the aisle to deliver both.”