Democratic Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger doubled down on her anti-immigration enforcement agenda with a new order Wednesday that scrapped cooperation agreements between state officials and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Spanberger, who officially entered office in January, issued a directive on Wednesday that compelled the Virginia State Police, the Virginia Department of Corrections and other state agencies to end all 287(g) agreements with ICE. The order came down just days after Spanberger immediately rescinded an executive order by her GOP predecessor that mandated more cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
“Virginia law enforcement remains focused on enforcing the law, and Virginia law enforcement will continue to exercise available authority – including in cooperation with local, state, federal, and tribal partners – under a valid judicial warrant,” Spanberger stated in the order.
“I have full confidence that Virginia law enforcement is keeping Virginia safer when exercising their authority under Virginia law,” the governor continued.
Named after a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act that authorized it, the 287(g) program is a voluntary program that trains law enforcement agencies at the state and local level to assist federal immigration authorities. ICE delegates certain immigration authorities to local law enforcement, which allows them to help the agency identify incarcerated and removable foreign nationals.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in September revealed it had inked more than 1,000 287(g) agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies across the country, helping deportation officers catch “murderers, gang members, rapists, pedophiles, and terrorists” in the process.
Spanberger, on the other hand, stated in Wednesday’s directive that a review of previous 287(g) agreements determined they “improperly cede accountability and discretion” of the state’s law enforcement to the federal government by requiring them to work under the supervision of ICE officials. The Democrat’s order demanded relevant state agencies submit lists of all 287(g) agreements and similar cooperation activities in existence within five days, including the date in which the state agencies ended their agreements.
The directive marked the latest move Spanberger made on immigration since replacing term-limited Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.
Within hours of being sworn into office on Jan. 17, Spanberger signed Executive Order 10, a proclamation rescinding an executive order signed by Youngkin requiring Virginia law enforcement officials to work with ICE. The order pushed localities across the state to cooperate with immigration agents during enforcement operations, with a former Youngkin staffer telling the Daily Caller News Foundation that it helped catch thousands of criminal migrants.
Spanberger, a former congresswoman, had vowed to roll back Youngkin’s order when campaigning for governor in 2025. She handily defeated former Republican Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears in the November 2025 gubernatorial election, a double-digit victory in what became a Democrat sweep across Virginia’s statewide elected positions.
“By directing our local law enforcement to stop working with federal law enforcement agencies, our streets have become less safe with a stroke of the pen,” former Virginia Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares said at the time of Spanberger’s January order.
“This is a disaster for the public safety of the Commonwealth. Mark my words, there will be Virginians who will be robbed, raped and murdered as a result of this anti public safety executive order,” Miyares went on. “No one should be surprised.”
A DHS spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the DCNF.
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