California governor candidates clash over sanctuary law and immigration enforcement

California’s next governor will inherit a fight over who local police serve first: their own communities or federal immigration authorities. At a televised debate at East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park, seven candidates clashed over the state’s sanctuary law, turning a policy dispute into a test of how far California should go in limiting cooperation with ICE.

The law at the center of the argument is SB 54, the California Values Act, enacted in 2017. It restricts when state and local law enforcement can honor ICE holds, transfers and notifications, while still allowing cooperation in criminal investigations and some joint task force work. Supporters say the law keeps local officers focused on public safety and protects due process. Opponents say it blocks cooperation with federal immigration enforcement and makes it harder to remove people they want detained.

The exchange came in a race that has already made immigration one of its sharpest fault lines. The debate featured Xavier Becerra, Chad Bianco, Steve Hilton, Matt Mahan, Katie Porter, Tom Steyer and Antonio Villaraigosa, all trying to position themselves on an issue that cuts across policing, civil rights and state sovereignty. Candidates had been invited under debate criteria tied to filing rules, fundraising or contribution thresholds, and polling support, underscoring how central the immigration clash has become in a crowded contest.

Becerra defended California’s approach, saying the federal government cannot force the state to do federal immigration work. He also argued that California already notifies ICE about some people in custody, but cannot legally hold them after they have finished serving their sentence without becoming part of federal detention. That distinction matters to sheriffs, police chiefs and jail administrators who must decide where the state’s duty ends and federal authority begins.

The legal battle is still active. El Cajon has sued California over the sanctuary laws, and a DOJ-backed challenge filed in 2025 has kept the issue alive in court. Gov. Gavin Newsom has also said California cooperates with federal authorities to deport violent criminals, a position critics say exposes the gap between the sanctuary label and the state’s actual practice. For immigrant families, the stakes are immediate: whether a traffic stop, a jail booking or a local arrest becomes a pipeline into federal custody. For local agencies, the question is whether California can keep that line clear while still working with Washington when public safety truly requires it.