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Archive photo · 22 August 2022ICE Raids Under “Operation Save California” Fuel CA-22 Race Between Randy Villegas And David Valadao
“Those raids, part of the administration’s mass deportation campaign, have become a flashpoint in the race”
“Valadao claimed ‘a lot’ of the individuals captured by ICE in the Central Valley in recent weeks have criminal records,”
Photo: 4300streetcar, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for layout
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
ICE raids under Operation Save California shadow the CA-22 congressional race between Valadao and Villegas. Randy Villegas is the Democratic challenger aiming to unseat Republican incumbent David Valadao in CA-22.
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ICE raids and CA-22
Federal immigration agents fanned out across California’s Central Valley as part of a 45-day effort titled “Operation Save California” by the Trump administration, and the raids became a flashpoint in the race for California’s 22nd congressional district. Randy Villegas told Al Jazeera that “I’ve spoken to local business owners who have told me how their businesses are now struggling as a result of these ICE raids,” and he added, “It’s having an impact on people who just want to go to work, want to go to school.”
The Department of Homeland Security said in an email that “Allegations that DHS law enforcement engages in ‘racial profiling’ are disgusting, reckless, and categorically FALSE,” and it argued that “What makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is if they are illegally in the US – NOT their skin colour, race, or ethnicity.” Teresa Romero, president of the UFW, said in a statement on October 10, “We are seeing car windows being smashed and farm workers dragged from vehicles in the middle of the road while on their way to work.”
Valadao, Villegas, and contrast
Randy Villegas positioned his campaign against ICE in California’s 22nd Congressional District, and The Intercept described his opposition to ICE in a district that is 70 percent Latino or Hispanic as the sharpest point of contrast with Rep. David Valadao.
Valadao defended the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant campaign and uttered “It is what it is” on the debate stage last month when pressed on the issue, according to The Intercept.
Raul Castro, a Fresno County probation officer, told The Intercept, “I’ve never seen him stand up to something I feel is egregious,” and Castro added, “I just don’t respect people like that.”
Villegas told The Intercept at a Fresno park rally, “People are fed up with an agency who is unaccountable, people are fed up with a member of Congress who is unaccountable, who doesn’t even have public town halls,” and he said, “We deserve better than that in the Central Valley.”
What the race could decide
California voters were set to decide whether Democrats could control Congress, and CalMatters said the path runs through California’s most consequential U.S. House races, including the Central Valley contest between Rep. David Valadao and Randy Villegas.
CalMatters reported that Democrats were poised to flip at least three seats currently held by California Republicans after voters approved Proposition 50 last year, which redrew five of California’s districts to favor Democrats as a countermeasure to pro-Republican gerrymandering in Texas.
CalMatters said the remaining two redrawn districts, including one in the Central Valley, were more competitive even though Democrats outnumber Republicans in voter registration, and it noted that counties tabulate ballots received up to seven days after Election Day.
ABC7 Los Angeles said the Cook Political Report ranked District 22 as the only true toss-up race in California, and it quoted Dr. Thomas Holyoke saying, “Mr. Valadao's district is one of the ones targeted and of one of the districts that California re-districted early in the year to make Mr. Valadao even more vulnerable.”