Where Does Sherrod Brown Stand on ICE?

As he seeks a comeback, former Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, spoke with CNN about what another term of his would look like, sparking chatter about his stance on Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

During the interview, CNN’s Manu Raju asked about the leftward shift of his party. “Since you left Washington, there are some issues in which your party has grown increasingly to the left on, [including] abolishing ICE,” Raju pointed out, asking if Brown supported that.

“I don’t. I’m not paying enough attention to know what votes are coming up,” Brown said.

He offered a similar response when Raju asked again if he supports abolishing ICE. “I’m not close enough to make those decisions at this point. I think for sure we need rules around ICE,” Brown responded.

When “Inside Politics” aired on Sunday, Raju framed it as an issue on which “Brown is showing caution.”

In a statement to the Daily Signal, Brown campaign spokesperson Lauren Chou made it clear where the candidate stands.

“Sherrod Brown does not support abolishing ICE. Sherrod’s focus is on keeping Ohio’s communities safe by getting violent criminals and human traffickers off the streets and ensuring those are the individuals ICE focuses on,” she said.

Brown has expressed opposition to abolishing ICE more clearly in the past. “No, you shouldn’t abolish ICE. You should reform ICE and make it work better than it is,” Brown said in 2018.

Republicans used the moment to target Brown with a clip from that part of the interview. RNC Research noted Brown served in office for decades, calling the former senator a “Total fraud.”

Sen. Jon Husted, who is running against Brown, also capitalized on the CNN interview through his campaign staff.

“Not close enough to make those decisions? No one was closer to the chaos coming out of Washington than Sen. Sherrod Brown,” Husted campaign spokesperson Amy Natoce told the Daily Signal.

“He spent more than 30 years in Washington failing hardworking Ohio families. Now he’s portraying himself as an outsider in the hopes that voters will forget his liberal agenda. It didn’t work in 2024, and it won’t work now.”

The Ohio Republican Party also responded to the CNN clip, urging Ohioans to keep Brown out of politics. “He’ll say anything to get elected. We fired him once, we’ll do it again in November,” claimed one social media post by the organization. “A bigger phony politician does not exist in America,” claimed another from Ohio GOP Chairman Alex Triantafilou.

At the national level, the National Republican Senatorial Committee called the moment “weak.” The Republican National Committee’s Midwest regional communications director, Hunter Lovell, also posted the clip, writing, “Shady Sherrod Brown spent 32 years in Washington accomplishing next to nothing.”

As a way to boost Husted, Lovell pointed out that “Ohio voters already rejected Brown’s failed record once,” adding that Husted “is prepared to retire this empty-suit politician for good this November.”

The race between Brown and Husted is rated a “Toss-Up” for the 2026 midterms. Husted was appointed by Gov. Mike DeWine to replace now-Vice President JD Vance, triggering a special election. The winner will be up for reelection in 2028.