Democrats turn back to tough-on-crime policies

The big picture: From New Jersey to New Mexico, Democrats are calling for more police officers, tougher bail guidelines for repeat offenders, fewer early releases from jails and prisons, and more patrols in targeted areas.

• They want more action against crime in America's subway systems, on Native American reservations — and in rural communities, where Black and Latino residents are feeling the brunt of violent crime.
• These Democrats' ideas are alarming some progressives, who in recent years embraced police reforms (including increased spending on police-backed community programs), and who note that crime rates across the nation are at or near historic lows.
• Progressives also fret that Republicans' plans for a new anti-crime bill could bring echoes of the 1994 bipartisan anti-crime law, signed by President Clinton, that led to a dramatic rise in incarcerated Black men.

Zoom in: Signs of a Democratic hardening on crime are evident nationwide.

• In April, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham ordered the National Guard to Albuquerque — one of the nation's most violent cities — to help police with crime months before Trump sent troops to Washington, D.C.
• Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, whose tough-on-crime approach was credited with helping her defeat more progressive rivals in 2023, has touted her policies as a key factor in the city's steep drop in homicides.
• After taking office in January 2024, Parker declared a public safety emergency and adopted a wide-ranging plan based on increased, targeted policing.

In New Jersey, Democrats in the state Assembly have proposed a bill that would punish parents (up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine) if their minor children join mass fights or riots — an effort to curb increasingly violent gatherings of youths.

• In California, Democrats are mulling more bipartisan anti-crime ideas after voters last year approved increased prison time for some nonviolent offenses such as shoplifting and drug possession.

Trump's repeated complaints about violent crime appear to have led Democrats in mayoral races from Seattle to New Orleans to back a mix of proposals.

• Helena Moreno, seeking to become New Orleans' first Latina mayor, released a public safety plan that promises faster police response times and expanded officer recruitment efforts.
• In the Albuquerque mayor's race, progressive candidate Alex Uballez — a former U.S. attorney who's seeking to unseat fellow Democrat Tim Keller — promises to reassign officers to troubled areas and revamp the police department's management.

Many Democrats' tilt away from the "defund the police" movement has also raised the possibility that the GOP-backed crime bill Trump wants Congress to pass will draw some Democratic support — particularly because it's expected to include funds to help cities hire more police.

• It's a dramatic shift from even a year ago, when many Democrats downplayed the 30th anniversary of the big crime bill that Clinton signed and that was backed by Joe Biden, a U.S. senator at the time.

What they're saying: "Democrats need to get their head(s) out of their asses when it comes to this issue," Sam Bregman, a district attorney and a Democratic candidate for New Mexico governor in 2026, told Axios.

• "If you don't feel safe in your neighborhood, then you're not safe. We, as Democrats, can't ignore that," Bregman said. Cracking down on gang violence is a focus of his campaign.
• Bregman announced his candidacy in a video featuring him as a cowboy riding a horse in the desert, coming to help a state with the nation's second-highest violent crime rate.

The intrigue: The shift among Democrats has led progressive New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani to walk back prior positions on crime, notably his support for the "defund the police" effort.

The other side: Insha Rahman of the Vera Institute of Justice told Axios that the move toward tough-on-crime proposals overlooks evidence that community-based preventative programs — some of which Trump slashed — are more effective.

• "That is what Democrats and others who oppose President Trump's actions should be calling out ... the cutting of funding and programs and services that prevent crime and save lives," Rahman said.

Between the lines: The more Democrats focus on crime, the less they talk about the economy, which is what Trump wants, California-based GOP consultant and podcaster Mike Madrid tells Axios.

• "This is all a distraction," he said. "The number-one issue is still affordability, and as long as the Democrats turn to crime, they are playing Trump's game."