The sheriff of North Carolina's largest county has been voted out of office, largely due to his support of a program that assists Immigration and Customs Enforcement in deporting illegal immigrants, The Intercept reports.
Sheriff Irwin Carmichael of Mechlenburg County, a Democrat, came under fire for his participation in ICE's 287(g) program, in which state and local law enforcement partner with ICE to assume an active role in deporting illegal immigrants. In 2017, the Mechlenburg County Sheriff's Office helped in almost 300 deportations.
Carmichael in third in the Democratic primary Wednesday night. Gary McFadden, a former police detective who opposed the program, won with 52 percent of the vote. He will have no Republican opponent in the election, meaning he is all but guaranteed to be the county's next sheriff.
Carmichael blamed his loss on "outside influences," according to NBC affiliate WCNC.
"There's a lot of misinformation out there, but the citizens of Mecklenburg [County] have spoken," he added.
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