Glenview, Ill. — Democratic State Senator Laura Fine, the only candidate in Illinois’ Ninth Congressional District Democratic Primary with ads on broadcast TV, is calling out right-wing Republicans for mobilizing against her legislation that would bar the roughly 12,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers hired by Donald Trump since his inauguration from working in state or local law enforcement. 

“Republicans in Illinois and across the country take their marching orders from Donald Trump and Stephen Miller, and they are throwing the kitchen sink at my bill holding them accountable for inciting fear and violence in our community,” Senator Fine said. “I’ve never backed down from a fight—not when the insurance companies tried to bankrupt my family—and not when Donald Trump’s MAGA loyalists are making our communities less safe. In Congress, I’ll work to abolish ICE. Here at home, I’m working to make sure these officers, who are being hired without necessary training, cannot work for our law enforcement agencies as trusted community partners.” 

Over the holiday weekend, Awake Illinois announced it was launching a “mobility campaign” against Senator Fine and her new legislation (SB 2820). More than 350 people have already contacted Senator Fine’s official office. 

Highlights of Awake Illinois’s efforts:

• Shannon Adcock, Founder and President of Awake Illinois, said the group “will not back down until this harmful bill is defeated,” referred to ICE agents as “battle-tested federal pros.” 

• Far-right news network Newsmax highlighted Senator Fine’s SB 2820, featuring State Rep. John Cabello (R-Machesney Park) calling the legislation “stupid.”  

• Retired Riverside, Ill. Police Chief Tom Weitzel in a Tik Tok video likened the bill to “targeting African-Americans, Hispanic, Native Americans.”  

• Illinois House Republican leadership has attacked the bill as a “radical sanctuary expansion,” claiming it unfairly targets officers hired during the Trump administration despite reports that show ICE agents were often hired without standard background checks. 

• During a segment on AM 560 The Answer, radio hosts and guest commentators characterized Senator Fine’s legislation as a "Leninist-style purge" of law enforcement and a "political litmus test.” 

Senator Fine previously championed legislation that banned civil ICE arrests in and around courthouses, expanded “sensitive location” protections to schools, hospitals and daycares, created a state cause of action to allow people to sue after violations of their constitutional rights and restricted state and local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. She has emerged as one of Illinois’ most effective lawmakers, with more than 190 bills passed into law. Her record includes landmark consumer protection measures that have lowered costs and helped make Illinois one of the most consumer-friendly states in the country.