Top ICE Official Resigns, Launches Run For Congress

Madison Sheahan, the No. 2 official at Immigration and Customs Enforcement and a close ally of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, is leaving the agency to run for Congress, two U.S. officials familiar with the move told CBS News on Thursday.

Sheahan was installed as ICE’s deputy director in March, when the Trump administration overhauled the agency’s leadership amid mounting pressure to ramp up immigration arrests and deportations nationwide.

In a statement to CBS News, Noem confirmed Sheahan’s departure and praised her political future, saying Sheahan would be “a great defender of freedom when she goes to Congress.” Noem said she has known her for years.

“Madison Sheahan is a work horse, strong executor, and terrific leader who led the men and women of ICE to achieve the American people’s mandate to target, arrest, and deport criminal illegal aliens,” Noem said. “We wish her all the best.”

Madison Sheahan

Despite her close relationship with Noem, Sheahan’s appointment as the agency’s second-highest-ranking official frustrated some ICE officials, who pointed to the 28-year-old’s limited law enforcement background.

Before joining ICE, Sheahan served as secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Prior to that, she worked as an aide to Noem during her tenure as governor of South Dakota.

In a message to ICE employees posted on X shortly after the story was published, Sheahan said she was proud of having “strengthened” the agency and “restored its purpose.”

“As I depart the agency, I want to say that it has been the honor of my life to serve my country with all of you,” Sheahan wrote. “I want to thank President Trump and Secretary Noem for their leadership and for their steadfast commitment to our agency.”

ICE, which oversees deportations and immigration arrests inside the United States, has been at the center of President Trump’s aggressive crackdown on illegal immigration. The administration has sent thousands of ICE and Border Patrol agents into major U.S. cities, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from local leaders and liberal provocateurs.

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