Calvert for years has advocated for immigration reform, which he says must begin with controlling the U.S.-Mexico border to prevent people from entering illegally.
In 1996, he authored legislation that later became the E-Verify program, a tool used by employers to check the immigration status of newly hired employees. In 2023, he introduced legislation that would expand the use of the program. The bill, the Legal Workforce Act, was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary and the House committees on Ways and Means and Education and Workforce last year.
Calvert told The Times he favors passing legislation that guarantees a secure border and “ends the job magnet.”
“I support a system that rewards those who follow the rules and wait their turn, not one that gives a fast pass or grants amnesty to those who cut in line,” he said.
Last year, Calvert voted in favor of the Laken Riley Act, which allowed the Department of Homeland Security to detain noncitizens who have been arrested for burglary, theft, larceny or shoplifting. Kim also voted in favor of the legislation.
Kim has identified border security as a key issue in her campaign. She voted in favor of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which allocated $46.5 billion for border wall construction and additional funds for hiring Border Patrol agents. Calvert also voted in favor of the bill.
On her campaign website, Kim states that former President Biden “opened our border and purposely created a crisis that overwhelmed law enforcement and allowed deadly fentanyl to flood into our country.”
“It’s simple: enforce our laws, secure the border, no amnesty and put American safety first,” she wrote.
Varet supports the DREAM Act, which if passed would offer a path to legal status and citizenship for thousands of DACA recipients — undocumented people who were brought to the U.S. as children and given federal protections — and other undocumented minors, according to her campaign website. She also is in favor of legislation that would reduce green card backlogs, establishes a path to citizenship for people who have been in the country for a certain number of years, for people who have passed a background check and those who have worked in the agricultural industry.
She wrote that “undocumented immigrants already living in the U.S. and their children cannot and should not be removed other than for legitimate criminal justice or immigration law violation convictions.”
She supports providing a path to amnesty and providing funds to boost the number of immigration judges, consular officers and naturalization officers.
Linh, who came to the United States as a refugee from Vietnam as a young child, told The Times she supports “secure, orderly and lawful immigration.” She added that a functioning immigration system would protect everyone, including those who seek to enter the country.
“Real reform means a funded immigration court system, smart technology at ports of entry, and cooperation with origin countries on root causes. It means agents who identify themselves, follow the law, and are held accountable when they do not. It means a legal pathway that works, not one so backlogged that doing things right means waiting 15 years,” she said.
As an immigration attorney, Ramirez believes America should provide permanent legal status and a path to citizenship for Dreamers and immigrants who have contributed to the country for years.
“Our immigration laws need an overhaul and to be brought into the 21st century, giving workers more flexibility and options for people who are waiting decades to complete the legal process,” she told The Times. “In the meantime, we need to keep our communities safe from unlawful ICE enforcement while supporting effective community policing, accountability and trust in law enforcement…”
Kerr said immigration policies aren’t working, noting that it’s not simply a choice between “open borders and cruelty.”
He supports expanding immigration courts to eliminate backlogs, protecting Dreamers and creating a pathway to citizenship for people who contribute to the U.S., simplifying the process of legal immigration and boosting accountability for Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations to ensure enforcement is focused on real public safety threats.
“We can enforce the law with strength and we can do it with basic human dignity. These goals are not in conflict,” he wrote on his campaign website.
