Pushing to sign ICE deals and more news from the states

Good evening. In the wake of last week’s election results, the CEO of a private prison contractor is urging Immigration and Customs Enforcement to seal detention deals before Democrats take power. In Washington, a group of families and LGBTQ+ organizations are challenging an anti-transgender ballot measure that passed Tuesday. 

On Capitol Hill, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth survived an impeachment effort Tuesday. And Republican House members elected a new far-right leader, while Democrats in the U.S. Senate are debating who should lead their new majority.

Across the country, lawmakers and law enforcement are grappling with the rise of “child predator hunters.” 

And another state is now confronting the masculine pronouns in its constitution after electing a woman governor. 

The CEO of Tennessee-based CoreCivic is urging Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials to act with speed in inking contracts for immigration detention centers after Democrats scored big wins in last week’s elections, Tennessee Lookout reports.

The private prison and immigration detention center operator netted $1.3 billion in its most recent quarter from the sales of four detention centers to the Department of Homeland Security as the second Trump administration ramped up immigrant detentions nationwide. The sales helped bolster publicly-traded company’s better-than-predicted profits in the third quarter of this year. 

Historic Democratic victories on Nov. 3 could put a damper on future ICE deals after members of the newly-elected Democratic majority in the U.S. House and Senate are sworn into office in January. Democratic candidates across the country campaigned on reigning in controversial ICE enforcement tactics that have led to unprecedented numbers of immigrants being detained.

More immigration coverage: 

One week after Washington voters approved an initiative to bar transgender girls from competing in girls’ sports, parents are suing to block it, Washington State Standard reports.

The legal challenge argues Initiative 638 violates the state constitution’s right to privacy and antidiscrimination law. The initiative is set to take effect Dec. 3, which the lawsuit seeks to delay.

The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association led the nation with a policy allowing student-athletes to compete on the teams that align with their gender identity. The association says just 10 or so student-athletes have disclosed being transgender, but the association doesn’t require disclosure.

Florida: A week after the first Democratic Socialist of America-backed candidate won a seat in the Florida Legislature, Republican Attorney General James Uthmeier is subpoenaing the organization.

Kansas: 140 years later, voters appear to have elected the second Black Kansan to hold statewide office, as Democrat Kelechi “KC” Ohaebosim is poised to become the next lieutenant governor. 

Louisiana: Nearly one in five rape kits collected over an 18-month period from 2024-25 was never submitted to a crime lab for testing, according to a report from the state Legislative Auditor.

Oklahoma: Since launching about 10 years ago, certified community behavioral health clinics have become an integral part of the state healthcare system. But now, the cash-strapped state and clinics have found themselves burdened with soaring costs, creating uncertainty over the future.

New Mexico: High-earning families could soon pay monthly fees to keep their kids in the state’s first-in-the-nation universal childcare program.

Missouri: The state is one of just three that have decided not to adopt optional hardship exceptions to Medicaid work requirements set to take effect nationwide Jan. 1.

Alaska: The state Supreme Court overturned a lower court decision that dismissed a lawsuit against Albertsons and Kroger for their role in the state’s prescription opioid addiction epidemic.

New Hampshire: Voters in a majority of school districts — 91 out of 168 — cleared the 60% requirement to impose a tax cap, potentially hobbling local education budgets.

Tennessee: Republican Gov.-elect Marsha Blackburn said a review of state spending modeled after the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency is among her first priorities.

Montana: The state Supreme Court ruled that Republican Attorney General Austin Knudsen exceeded his authority when he attempted to seize administration of the Gallatin County attorney’s office during a dispute about collaboration with federal immigration enforcement.

West Virginia: Lawmakers again posed questions to Flock Safety, as they work to introduce legislation to rein in the artificial intelligence-driven police surveillance devices.

Much of the midterm “blue tsunami” came from diverse, enthusiastic young voters with financial struggles who flocked to the polls, and also Trump voters sitting out the election, according to two experts analyzing turnout in a handful of states with detailed results. 

The results, they say, could mean a mandate for bringing costs down and more power for young Latinos, but also a danger for Democrats if Republicans rally back to the polls in 2028. 

Read more from Stateline.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has survived an impeachment effort, at least for now, after the U.S. House on Tuesday blocked a vote over charges that the Cabinet official oversaw extrajudicial killings and an illegal war against Iran, States Newsroom’s D.C. Bureau reports. 

The House voted 211-204, largely along party lines, to refer articles of impeachment against Hegseth to a committee — effectively killing the impeachment effort until the end of the current Congress in January. Eleven Democrats and seven Republicans missed the vote.

The vote came hours after Hegseth defended himself in a fiery news conference at the Pentagon, where he called the bid to remove him a “farce” and likened himself to President Donald Trump, who was twice impeached during his first term.

Rep. Thomas Massie, an outgoing Kentucky Republican, introduced the articles of impeachment Monday. 

U.S. House Republicans voted behind closed doors Tuesday to elect Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio as their leader after the party’s stunning losses in the midterm elections, the D.C. Bureau reports. 

Jordan, a staunch defender of Trump and a founder of the House Freedom Caucus, will succeed House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana, who declined to run again.

The incoming Republican minority leader will be charged with growing the party’s seats after the House GOP lost more than 40 after last week's elections. 

Senate Republicans also voted behind closed doors Tuesday to keep South Dakota Sen. John Thune as GOP leader when Republicans become the minority party in that chamber in January.

Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, the current Senate minority leader, said Tuesday he’s confident he will be reelected as Democratic leader for the next Congress, despite opposition from prominent members, who argue he isn’t up to the task, the D.C. Bureau reports.

Democrats during the midterm election campaign promised bold steps to make life more affordable if voters elected them to control Congress next year. But lawmakers likely will find that bringing down gasoline and other energy prices as winter arrives will take more than an act or two of Congress. And it’s largely a process out of their control, the D.C. Bureau reports. 

“You can’t legislate your way out of high gasoline prices,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, which tracks prices.

There are quick fixes. They can involve suspending fuel taxes, drawing from petroleum reserves and easing restrictions on certain products. Most of those strategies have been tried this year, and have had minimal if any impact.

Related: Maine governor joins New England leaders in call for increased federal heating assistance

Sweeping Democratic election wins could advance abortion access in states with tight restrictions, especially in Georgia, Iowa and Texas, where Democrats seized the governor’s office for the first time in decades, Stateline reports. 

All three states will have Democratic attorneys general, and in Georgia and Texas, Democrats will control the state House while Republicans retain the state Senate.

Meanwhile, in Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Democrats have won new “trifectas” — control of the governor’s office and both legislative chambers — creating new opportunities to expand abortion rights. Both Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and Wisconsin Democratic Gov.-elect David Crowley have already pledged to codify abortion rights through state law or constitutional amendment.

Related coverage: 

Across the country, dozens of civilian groups, or vigilantes, are posing as children online, arranging meetings with adults they suspect of seeking sex with minors and livestreaming the confrontations to thousands of viewers. Stateline identified nearly 50 individuals or groups that have posted online content exposing suspected child predators.

The groups say they are helping protect children and bring suspected predators to justice. But some law enforcement officials and legal experts warn that their tactics can jeopardize criminal investigations, complicate prosecutions and put public safety at risk. Public accusations can also have lasting consequences for people who are never charged with a crime, while some groups encourage their followers to pressure police to make arrests.

For state lawmakers and law enforcement officials, the growing presence of these groups adds another layer of complexity to efforts to combat online child sexual exploitation while protecting children and preserving the integrity of criminal investigations.

Virginia has its first woman governor, but its constitution still describes the office as a man’s job, Virginia Mercury reports.

Democrat Abigail Spanberger was sworn in on Jan. 17, 2026.

But Virginia’s constitution still includes gender-specific references to the governor, including “he shall hold office” and “he shall communicate to the General Assembly.” 

A similar issue surfaced in Maine when the state elected its first female governor, Janet Mills, in 2018.

Maine passed a bill in 2019 to remove gendered pronouns from references to the governor and chief justice, replacing them with wording focused on the office — for example, repeating “the chief justice” instead of using “he” or “him.” 

In 2018, South Dakota elected its first woman governor, Republican Kristi Noem, who pushed to change male references to the governor in the state Constitution. However, after lawmakers passed the amendment, residents rejected it in November 2024.

Spanberger’s administration has not publicly stated its stance on the matter, and no legislation proposing a gender-neutral constitutional amendment has been introduced.