DNC Members Back Non-Binding Resolution to Abolish ICE, Also Pass Competing Reform Measure

The Democratic National Committee approved a resolution Saturday urging congressional Democrats to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, packaged alongside a competing resolution calling only for reforms, according to the Associated Press. Both measures passed as part of a bundled package on a unanimous voice vote of the full membership, according to the Washington Times. The abolition measure, known as Resolution 27, was proposed by Louisiana DNC member Michele Johnson. It cleared the DNC's Resolutions Committee on Thursday, Aug. 13, in a 25-12 vote with one abstention, according to Newsweek. The separate reform resolution, sponsored by DNC Chairman Ken Martin, drew broader support in committee than the abolition proposal, Newsweek reported.

Johnson defended her push in blunt terms. "I think one of the reasons why people are not trusting the party is because we sound so academic," she said, according to the AP. "We sound focus group tested, we sound poll tested because we're worried about saying the wrong thing or doing the wrong thing and not just like, just stand on business, like take a position."

Not everyone in the room agreed. DNC member Yvonne Reeves-Chong voted against the abolition measure, warning it would energize only part of the party's base while drawing "fire" from another group of voters. "I would strongly suggest we get to the business of winning races so we can make the policies that make a difference," she said, according to the AP.

What the resolution actually does

Resolution 27 calls on Democratic members of Congress to enact legislation dissolving ICE and winding down the current immigration detention system, according to Newsweek. It also calls for restricting Department of Homeland Security funding unless the agency ends specific practices: workplace raids, mass roundups, arrests at courthouses, arrests at ICE check-ins, and enforcement actions near schools and houses of worship. The resolution further calls for terminating federal contracts with private detention providers and argues immigration detention is a civil rather than criminal matter, according to Newsweek.

Crucially, the vote is nonbinding and does not change the Democratic Party's official 2028 platform. Ken Martin, the DNC chairman, was explicit about that limit. "Our official party positions are determined at the convention every four years in our platform," Martin said in a statement to Newsweek. He argued Democrats remain unified in opposing the administration's enforcement approach even where they disagree on the fix: "Clearly, the one thing that unites Democrats, regardless of their position on reform versus abolish or whatever other ways to change what's happening, is people believe that what ICE is doing right now and CBP and the federal government should stop. There has to be a better way."

Context: fatal shootings and a record enforcement push

The AP and ABC News both noted the resolution follows two fatal shootings by ICE agents in July, including the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota, Martin's home state. ICE has been a target of progressive activism since 2018, during Trump's first term, when "Abolish ICE" first became a rallying cry.

The vote also lands as the Trump administration ramps up enforcement. Border czar Tom Homan said in July that ICE was on pace to set arrest records for a second straight month, a push he described as "deportation-maxxing," according to Newsweek and the Daily Wire.

The White House response

The administration did not hold back. White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis told Newsweek: "Extreme radical Democrats want to abolish ICE and defund the police. Instead of trying to abolish ICE, Democrats should be thanking ICE law enforcement officers for putting their lives on the line to arrest and remove murderers, rapists, pedophiles, and gang members from American communities. Many of these criminals were released from jails by Democrat radical politicians. President Trump's efforts to remove criminal illegal aliens from American communities is already delivering results including the lowest murder rate in 125 years."

The stakes

Johnson's argument has some logic behind it. She pointed to the dissolution of ICE's predecessor agency, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, as precedent for restructuring immigration enforcement, according to the AP and Newsweek. If a meaningful chunk of the base wants a harder line against ICE tactics they view as excessive, a party that dodges the question risks looking evasive, which is exactly what Johnson argued.

Reeves-Chong's concern is just as fair. A national vote to abolish a federal law enforcement agency is a gift to Republican ad-makers heading into midterms where border security remains a top voter issue. She's betting that swing voters, not just the base, decide close races.

Neither resolution changes what happens on the ground. ICE continues operating under the Trump administration's expanded enforcement priorities, and Democratic candidates in competitive districts will keep deciding individually whether to embrace, distance from, or ignore Resolution 27 heading into November's midterms. The real test comes when individual Senate and House candidates in swing states get asked directly whether they back abolishing the agency.