Madison Sheehan, 28, is a graduate of Ohio State University. She is seeking to oust longtime incumbent Democratic Rep. Marcy Captur.
Hundreds of people stand in the rain in Ohio to protest the Minneapolis ICE shooting
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – A top U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official is leaving his post after less than a year to run a Republican congressional campaign in northwest Ohio’s most competitive district in the country.
Madison Sheehan, 28, announced her 9th election campaign in Ohio.th In the January 15th House of Representatives election, he will challenge incumbent Democrat Marcy Kaptur, who narrowly won re-election in 2024. The district includes Toledo and parts of northwestern Ohio.
“In less than a year at ICE, I stopped more illegal immigrants than Marcy Kaptur did in 43 years in Washington,” Sheehan said in his campaign launch video.
Sheehan, who described himself in the video as a “Trump conservative,” graduated from Ohio State University in 2019. According to her ICE bio, she was on the women’s rowing team and studied public relations. She served as deputy director of ICE before resigning.
Mr. Sheehan worked for former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, now the head of the Department of Homeland Security (the division that includes ICE), and later served as the head of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
“As Deputy Director of ICE, when President Trump asked me to help clean up this dangerous immigration mess, I accepted,” Sheehan said in the video.
If elected, Mr. Sheehan would also be the youngest member of Congress. Florida Democrat Maxwell Frost, first elected in 2022, is about a month older than Sheehan.
Kaptur is the longest-serving woman in Congress’ history. She was first elected in 1982, but the latest redistricting expected her district to lean more Republican.
Kaptur was one of 75 Democrats to vote alongside Republicans on the June 2025 resolution expressing support for ICE, sparking backlash from other Democrats. Other Ohio Democratic members of Congress also supported the resolution.
Sheehan joins a crowded Republican primary field that includes state Rep. Josh Williams, former state Rep. Derek Merrin and Air Force veteran Aleah Nadeem. The two will face off in the Republican primary election in May.
David Geddert, also known as drag queen Sugar Vermonte, is running as a Libertarian in the district.
Nonpartisan analyst Cook Political Report notes that the race in OH-9 is a toss-up for Democrats.
Anna Lynn Winfrey is a reporter for the Columbus Dispatch. She can be reached at awinfrey@dispatch.com.
