# ICE fears drive Latino voters to polls in record numbers > Rather than suppressing turnout, Trump's immigration crackdown is motivating Latino communities to vote in historic numbers across the country. - Title: ICE fears drive Latino voters to polls in record numbers - Summary: Rather than suppressing turnout, Trump's immigration crackdown is motivating Latino communities to vote in historic numbers across the country. Latino voters… - Keywords: latino voters, ice enforcement, voter turnout, 2026 elections, immigration policy, get-out-the-vote, texas, georgia, nevada, arizona, ICE, fears - Source: WIRED — https://wired.com/story/ice-is-inspiring-latinos-to-vote-in-historic-numbers - Author: David Gilbert - Published: 2026-11-03T11:30:00+00:00 - Read time: 2 min - Topics: latino voters, ice enforcement, voter turnout, 2026 elections, immigration policy, get-out-the-vote, texas, georgia, nevada, arizona ## Fear becomes fuel, not barrier Civil society groups feared Trump's immigration crackdowns would suppress Latino voter turnout. Instead, anti-ICE sentiment is driving people to the polls in record numbers. ## Organizers see defiance, not fear Michael Mireles, a canvassing organizer with LUPE Votes in southern Texas, says people are not worried ICE will appear at polling locations. They are driven by anti-ICE sentiment. > People are driven right now by their anti-ICE sentiment, and it's not stopping them from going to the polls. ## Administration hints at polling place deployment The Department of Homeland Security and Trump administration claim no plans to deploy ICE agents to polling locations. ## Early voting surges nationwide By Monday afternoon, more than fifty seven million people had voted early, ten million more than the total early voting figure in the two thousand twenty two midterms. ## Texas shows dramatic Latino turnout In Texas, over four hundred thousand people who did not vote in two thousand twenty four have cast ballots. Fifty percent of that figure are Latino voters, according to Democrat strategist Tom Bonier. ## National Hispanic turnout up sharply By October twenty seventh, three point eight million Hispanic and Latino voters had cast ballots nationwide, a massive increase from two point three five million Hispanic and Latino voters who had voted by the same… ## Rio Grande Valley race could shift In Texas's fifteenth congressional district, over twelve thousand people who voted early did not vote in previous elections.Incumbent Republican congresswoman Monica De La Cruz won in two thousand twenty two by around twelve thousand votes. ## Organizers frame choice clearly Liliana Rivera Baiman, an organizer with six one four ICE Watch and Ohio Good Neighbor Network, told communities the reality of ICE enforcement and gave them a choice: show up to vote or continue dealing… > You're either going to show up and vote and make sure that your voice is counted, or you're going to stay home and continue to deal with this for the next two or three years, possibly longer. ## Experience breeds resolve, not fear Communities that have faced ICE enforcement understand preparation is key and how traumatizing it is. ## Volunteers report unprecedented turnout Living United for Change in Arizona knocked on thousands of doors in one recent week.One thousand people told the group they voted early or mailed ballots back. > People are saying 'Yes, there are threats out there, looming, but we're still going to show up regardless.' ## Defiance becomes the message Elected leaders and voting rights groups say it is important to lean into defiance and tell voters that the opposition would not make voting so difficult if there was no power in it. > The threats are real, but so is the joy, and there is a real joy that comes in participating in democracy. ## Key takeaway Latino voters are turning out in record numbers, driven by opposition to ICE enforcement rather than deterred by it, defying predictions of a chilling effect on turnout.