Chris Madel abruptly ended his run for Minnesota governor after accusing a federal immigration enforcement push of overreach that has swept up U.S. citizens, citing a January 19 incident in St. Paul as a turning point.
Republican Chris Madel said Monday that he has terminated his campaign for governor, faulting Operation Metro Surge for exceeding its stated aims and entangling ordinary people in enforcement actions. He once backed the effort’s focus on public safety but now argues it has become a broader problem that threatens civil liberties. His break with the operation is blunt and public.
The decision follows a January 19 episode in St. Paul when federal agents detained ChongLy “Scott” Thao during what the Department of Homeland Security called a “targeted operation” seeking two convicted sex offenders. Video of the detainment circulated and intensified scrutiny of how the operation is being conducted on Minnesota streets. That single incident helped crystallize Madel’s objections.
Madel didn’t mince words about the program’s direction, calling Operation Metro Surge an “unmitigated disaster” in a recent video statement. He also said, “Operation Metro Surge has expanded far beyond its stated focus on true public safety threats,” Madel told CBS News. Those comments mark a sharp shift from a candidate who had previously supported aggressive enforcement aimed at criminal offenders.
He argues the net being cast by federal agents is too wide, and that everyday citizens are paying the price. Madel asserts many people, particularly people of color, now live with an added burden—feeling they must carry paperwork to prove citizenship when they leave home. That kind of fear corrodes trust in law enforcement and in the rule of law itself.
Madel further alleges that ICE tactics include raids based on civil warrants signed only by border patrol agents rather than judicial authorities, a practice he calls “unconstitutional and wrong,” and one that should unsettle conservatives who care about constitutional limits. From a Republican standpoint, backing law-and-order does not mean endorsing unchecked authority that violates basic rights. If enforcement tools ignore due process, they lose legitimacy and public support.
At the same time, Madel acknowledges ICE has taken into custody a number of unauthorized migrants with criminal records across Minnesota, and he does not deny the state faces real public-safety challenges tied to illegal immigration. His position is not anti-enforcement; it’s a demand that enforcement be precise and lawful. The argument is that protecting communities and protecting citizens’ rights must go hand in hand.
Adding political fuel to the controversy are revelations about Madel’s past donations to Democrats, which have amplified skepticism inside his own party. He contributed to Governor Tim Walz’s 2021 re-election effort after the governor’s COVID-19 policies and later donated to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024. For many Republicans in Minnesota, those moves raised questions about where his loyalties and instincts truly lie.
Those donations do complicate his standing among conservative voters now alarmed by federal enforcement tactics, making it harder for him to frame his critique as purely ideological rather than opportunistic. Party activists are asking whether his exit reflects policy principle or political calculation. Either way, the fallout spotlights fractures inside Republican ranks over how to handle immigration enforcement responsibly.
Operation Metro Surge touches on a real and urgent issue—criminal activity tied to unauthorized migrants—but the way the effort is executed matters as much as the targets. If citizens are being detained or feel compelled to prove their status because of overbroad sweeps, the program has serious design and oversight problems. That tension is what Republicans in Minnesota will now wrestle with as they weigh support for vigorous border and immigration policy against the need to defend constitutional protections and public trust.
