Press Release - Matsui Campaign Boosting MAGA Republican Who Wants More ICE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - May 18, 2026

SACRAMENTO, CA — Rep. Doris Matsui's campaign is openly working to boost a MAGA Republican into the top two primary, helping to support a weaker November opponent and avoid a real fight with her Democratic challenger. The Republican she is elevating has pledged to advance Donald Trump's agenda and flood Sacramento with ICE agents.

On the "Media" page of her campaign website, Matsui's team published a research-style dossier promoting a Trump-aligned Republican candidate as "the strongest Republican in the June 2 primary", complete with talking points on his ICE and immigration positions for Republican-leaning voters to "see, read, and see on the go."

It is a public roadmap for boosting a Trump Republican into the November general election. Matsui — who took roughly 70% of her 2024 contributions from PACs — is telling her corporate donors to spend money elevating a Trump Republican because she’d rather she face a MAGA Republican than a Democrat who refuses corporate money.

"Doris Matsui is intentionally boosting a MAGA Republican who wants to flood our city with ICE agents — and she's doing it with a nudge to the corporate super PACs that have hurt working families," said Councilmember Mai Vang. "Establishment politicians like Doris would rather see a Republican extremist in power than pass the torch to the next generation of leadership. This is the kind of ugly, self-serving politics that turns people off from our democracy, and it's what I'm running to defeat."

The strategy is transparent: with polling showing Vang as her strongest challenger, the 21-year incumbent is using her campaign infrastructure to tee up a weaker Republican opponent for November. These tactics are a betrayal of Sacramento's mixed-status families, who already live in fear of ICE raids and now have their Congressional representative amplifying a candidate whose central promise is more of them.

"Sacramento families are living in fear of ICE raids right now. Mixed-status families are afraid to drop their kids off at school. And the response from our 21-year incumbent is to amplify a Republican who wants more of it, just to save her own seat," Vang continued. "Sacramento deserves better than a career politician who would sooner build up a Trump Republican than make room for new leadership."

Matsui “media” page supporting the Republican candidate can be found here: https://matsuiforcongress.com/media/.

Screenshots found here: https://we.tl/t-uRxMea20CJk5vr5P 

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