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In the wake<\/span> of a deadly shooting of a young father in southern Maine on Monday, the abbreviated race to replace Graham Platner on the Democratic Party ticket for the 2026 Senate race quickly became centered on immigration \u2014 and most of the serious contenders are on the same page.<\/p>\n At least five of the candidates to replace Platner<\/a> have come out in favor of abolishing or \u201cdismantling\u201d U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement after federal agents gunned down Johan Sebasti\u00e1n Dur\u00e1n Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine.<\/p>\n The scramble to denounce ICE by would-be Democratic Senate nominees came days ahead of a scheduled debate on Thursday evening, where the hopefuls will face off to make the case for why they should take on incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins.<\/p>\n Panagioti Tsolkas, a spokesperson for the Maine Immigrants\u2019 Rights Coalition, said he was \u201cheartened\u201d to see the outpouring of anger from candidates in the wake of the shooting, but cautioned that a sustained effort would be needed from Maine\u2019s politicians.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to see the state of Maine step up right now and take action on a full investigation and accountability in this killing,\u201d Tsolkas said. \u201cIt\u2019s gotta be more than lip service, and it has to be more than just showing up at the vigils when you have a chance to speak on stage.\u201d<\/p>\n Guerrero died early Monday morning after an ICE agent shot the 25-year-old during a traffic stop targeting another man, according to a spokesperson for the agency. <\/p>\n Guerrero\u2019s father told a news station in his native Colombia that his son was in the country legally, according to a report in the New York Times<\/a>, and worked two jobs as a food delivery driver and cleaner at a veterinary clinic. Guerrero leaves behind a wife and 3-year-old daughter.<\/p>\n The killing sparked furious protests across the state and turned immigration enforcement into a centerpiece issue of Maine political chatter and the crowded mini-race, which kicked off last week and is set to culminate in a nominating convention<\/a> in Bangor, Maine, on July 25.\u00a0<\/p>\n Platner \u2014 who dropped out of the race last week after allegations emerged that he had sexually assaulted<\/a> a former girlfriend, which he denies \u2014 had also called for ICE to be abolished. In his July 10 letter<\/a> removing himself from the race, he signed off by saying, \u201cF*ck ICE.\u201d<\/p>\n The unusual circumstances of Platner\u2019s self-ejection from the race \u2014 despite the popularity<\/a> of the movement<\/a> that won him the primary in June<\/a> \u2014 has set a curious political mood in Maine. Candidates seeking to replace him are hewing to his message while differentiating themselves <\/a>from his scandal-plagued personal brand.\u00a0<\/p>\n With just days left to make their pitch to Mainers, many of the candidates to replace Platner veered toward the nearest solidarity rally or anti-ICE protest as news of the killing filtered out of Biddeford.<\/p>\n The candidates calling for ICE to be abolished include Troy Jackson, a progressive from northern Maine who\u2019s swept up a raft of endorsements from local politicians and labor groups despite an underwhelming showing in the recent gubernatorial primary; fellow gubernatorial also-ran Dr. Nirav Shah; social worker Paige Loud<\/a> and former political operative and fundraiser Jordan Wood<\/a>, both of whom ran in the Democratic primary for Maine\u2019s 2nd Congressional District; and Dan Kleban<\/a>, the founder of a beer company in Maine who threw his hat into the ring for the Senate race last week.<\/p>\n While most Democrats in Maine have been highly critical of ICE and President Donald Trump\u2019s mass deportation agenda \u2014 especially in the wake of a surge of federal agents to the state in January<\/a> \u2014 only Jackson<\/a> and Loud<\/a> appear to have called for the agency to be abolished prior to Monday\u2019s shooting. With a majority of the candidates now declaring a full-throated commitment to scrapping ICE altogether, this week marked a sharp leftward shift in immigration discourse in Maine in the wake of Guerrero\u2019s killing.<\/p>\n