Aguirre Shifts On Sanctuary Policy

By Jim Hinch, the Voice of San Diego

June 4, 2025

Amid widespread condemnation of a federal immigration raid last weekend at a popular South Park restaurant, county supervisorial candidate Paloma Aguirre is softening her stance on a controversial county immigration policy.

Speaking to KPBS on Monday, Aguirre said she supports the county’s so-called “super sanctuary” policy, which bars county employees from assisting federal deportation efforts even in cases involving immigrants convicted of violent felonies.

“I don’t want to see, in any shape or form, our county resources being used to do [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] work,” Aguirre told KPBS.

In a January interview with Voice of San Diego, Aguirre shared a different view, calling the county sanctuary policy “a mistake.”

“Our communities have the right to feel safe, and I think that I would have taken a different approach,” Aguirre said in January. “We shouldn’t be making communities unsafe by putting out convicted felons.”

At the time, other candidates in the supervisor race, including Chula Vista Mayor John McCann, San Diego City Councilmember Vivian Moreno and Chula Vista City Councilmember Carolina Chavez, also voiced opposition to the sanctuary policy.

Asked about the contrast between Aguirre’s comments, her campaign consultant Dan Rottenstreich said Aguirre had not, in fact, changed her view. Rottenstreich said Aguirre’s criticism of the sanctuary policy in January stemmed not from opposition to the policy’s intent but from the fact that it was adopted without the cooperation of Sheriff Kelly Martinez.

Aguirre “did not support [the policy] at the time because it was done in conflict with the sheriff and in challenge to her statutory authority,” Rottenstreich said. “[Aguirre] stands by what she said in January…Just because you disagree with how something was done doesn’t mean you would then repeal the whole thing.”

The South Park neighborhood where the Friday raid took place is just inside the northern border of supervisorial District 1. Aguirre, who serves as Imperial Beach mayor, is campaigning to fill the District 1 seat, which was vacated late last year when former supervisor Nora Vargas unexpectedly resigned. Following an April primary vote, the race narrowed to Aguirre and McCann. The final day to vote in the general election is July 1.

Interestingly, Aguirre gained her strongest primary election support in South Park. She won 58 percent of the vote there, more than in any other constituency, including her own city, where she won 48 percent of votes, according to a post-election analysis by political consultant Mason Herron.

The day after the Friday raid, Aguirre issued a strongly worded statement calling the raid “an over the top, militarized show of force” and condemning immigration agents’ use of flash-bang grenades and assault rifles. She plans to stage a campaign appearance in South Park on Saturday.

McCann, who has remained opposed to the super sanctuary policy from the start of his campaign, did not respond to a request for comment about Friday’s raid.

Previously, McCann has said county employees should not participate in federal immigration enforcement — but also that the county should not hinder efforts to deport immigrants convicted of violent crimes.

In a campaign appearance last month, McCann said county supervisors should not allow politically charged issues over which they have little control to distract them from core county responsibilities, including budgets, healthcare and land use decisions.

“At the county, I’ll focus on core services, not pet projects,” McCann said.

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