Former ICE deputy director Madison Sheahan enters race for Congress against Ohio’s Marcy Kaptur
WASHINGTON - Madison Sheahan, who until recently served as deputy director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, announced Thursday she is running for Congress against U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur in Ohio’s 9th District.
Sheahan, 28, enters a crowded Republican primary field that already includes five candidates vying to challenge the 79-year-old Toledo Democrat, who is the longest-serving woman in congressional history.
In a campaign announcement video, Sheahan touted her brief tenure at ICE, claiming, “In less than one year at ICE, I’ve stopped more illegal immigration than Marcy Kaptur has in her 43 years in Washington.”
She criticized Kaptur for “voting against the funding of the border wall while sending billions in taxpayer handouts to illegals, free housing, health care paid for by you and for the American people.”
Sheahan also attacked Kaptur on tax policy, saying the congresswoman “voted with the Democrats to keep taxes on Social Security, tips and overtime.”
In her announcement, she described herself as a “Trump conservative running for Congress to protect American jobs, American paychecks and American values.”
The announcement makes Sheahan at least the sixth Republican to challenge Kaptur in what the National Republican Congressional Committee has identified as one of its top pickup opportunities.
Former state legislator Derek Merrin, who came close to defeating Kaptur in 2024, Air National Guard Lt. Col. Alea Nadeem, Ohio Rep. Josh Williams, retired Air Force Lt. Col. Wayne Charles Kinsel, and businessman Anthony Bruce Campbell have all filed candidacy paperwork at the Federal Election Commission.
Sheahan, a native of Curtice, Ohio, was captain of the rowing team at Ohio State University, served as a policy aide to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem when she was governor of South Dakota, and was secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries before joining ICE.
Republicans view Kaptur as increasingly vulnerable following October redistricting that transformed her already-challenging district into an even steeper climb. The new 9th District backed Donald Trump by 10.5 points in 2024, making it one of the most Republican-leaning seats held by any Democrat in the country.
Kaptur has raised more than $1.1 million for her reelection campaign and shows no signs of backing down. She has dismissed the redistricting as “self-serving” and vowed to “fight on for the people.”