Ex-ICE Deputy Running for Congress Faces Allegations Over Past Relationship With Subordinate

Minteesinot Niggusie

A former deputy director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement who has entered the race for Congress is facing allegations of a controlling relationship with a younger subordinate, according to reporting by the Daily Mail. Madison Sheahan, who is contesting Ohio’s ninth congressional district, is accused of exerting control over a 19-year-old woman.

The woman worked with her during the Trump 2020 presidential campaign, when Sheahan was also active within the Ohio Republican Party. The Daily Mail reported that the relationship began in 2020, when Sheahan was 23 and the younger woman was employed in a role connected to campaign work.

The report described the relationship as “toxic,” citing the former partner and other unnamed sources who worked alongside them at the time. According to the account, the younger woman lived in Sheahan’s home after losing student housing at Denison University during the Covid-19 pandemic.

She also reportedly worked under Sheahan’s supervision during part of 2020, raising questions about the professional overlap between the two. The former partner said Sheahan was “not comfortable in her own skin” in describing the nature of their relationship.

The report also cited allegations that Sheahan criticised the younger woman’s clothing choices and behaviour, including smoking. One incident described in the report involved a heated phone call in which Sheahan allegedly objected to what the younger woman planned to wear, with the exchange overheard by another staff member.

The relationship reportedly continued in various forms until 2022, when it ended over the phone after the younger woman planned to move to Washington DC. Sheahan has not responded publicly to the allegations.

Her political adviser Bob Pudachik denied the claims, stating that “Madison was not and has never been in a relationship with a subordinate.” The allegations have surfaced during the early stages of her campaign for federal office.