Democrat Danny Ceisler Wins Bucks County Sheriff Race, Promises to End ICE Partnership
Bucks County, Pennsylvania, a highly contested swing county with a population of over 500,000 including about 70,000 foreign-born residents, has seen a shift in its law enforcement leadership following the November sheriff election.
Incumbent Republican Sheriff Frederick Harran, who led a 287(g) immigration-enforcement agreement with ICE allowing officers to question immigration status and make immigration-related arrests, was defeated by Democrat Danny Ceisler by approximately 11 percentage points, gaining around 23,000 more votes. Ceisler's term is set to begin in January.
Earlier in October, a court ruling upheld the Bucks County ICE agreement, but Ceisler pledged to terminate the partnership upon taking office. He argued that local immigration enforcement harms public safety and undermines trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement. Meanwhile, Harran stated the 287(g) program was not fully implemented in the county, with 17 officers trained but without specifying detainee numbers.
This sheriff race reflects a broader Democratic wave in Bucks County, marked by the election of a Democratic district attorney—the first since 1965—and a Democratic majority on the school board. Despite this, the area remains represented in Congress by Republican Brian Fitzpatrick.
Federal data indicate the 287(g) program remains active nationwide with hundreds of signatories, including 49 agencies in Pennsylvania. Immigrant communities in Bucks County have reported fear of contacting police or reporting crimes due to deportation risks, with calls to 911 increasingly viewed as acts of courage.
The Bucks County election is seen as part of a wider national Democratic momentum, with similar trends evident in Virginia's Spanberger, New Jersey's Sherrill, and New York City's Zohran Mamdani.
