House Democrats Divided as GOP-Led Bill Seeks to Deport Illegal Migrants Convicted of Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse
A total of 145 House Democrats voted against legislation Thursday that would require the deportation of illegal migrants who commit sexual offenses or domestic violence in the United States.
The Preventing Violence Against Women by Illegal Aliens Act, introduced by Republican South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace, passed the House 274-145 with just 61 House Democrats, less than a third of the Democratic conference, supporting the bill. The legislation would also bar the entry of immigrants convicted of sex crimes, according to the bill text.
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“No family should endure the heartbreak the families of Laken Riley, Mollie Tibbetts, Karina Vetrano, and Maddie Hines have experienced. Every woman and every girl deserves to feel safe in their own community,” Mace said following the bill’s passage. “The radical left doesn’t agree with this. One hundred and forty-five liberals in Congress love illegal immigrant rapists and murders. House Republicans united to expand protections for women and put the safety of Americans first.”
Common Sense
“This isn’t complicated — keeping criminal illegal aliens out of our country and off our streets is just common sense,” Mace added. “Women should be able to walk down the street without fear, and families should feel safe in their own neighborhoods.”
Mace’s bill now heads to the Senate where Kansas Republican Sen. Roger Marshall has introduced the legislation as an amendment to the Laken Riley Act currently under consideration by the upper chamber.
Democratic lawmakers fiercely opposed Mace’s legislation requiring the deportation of illegal migrants who commit sexual violence, alleging that the bill will also lead to the deportation of victims of domestic violence who are illegal migrants or foreign nationals.
Deportation Plans Going Into Effect
“This is once again a bill that widens the highway to [President] Donald Trump’s mass deportation plans,” Democratic Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the congressional progressive caucus, said during floor debate on the bill.
Mace’s bill previously passed the House 266 to 158 during the last Congress in September 2024 with just 51 Democratic lawmakers voting for the legislation. The bill died in the Senate under Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s leadership, forcing Mace to reintroduce the legislation cracking down on illegal immigration on Jan. 3.
