Overview

• Tori Branum, 47, a Marine Corps veteran and firearms instructor running in Georgia’s 12th District, says she alerted ICE months before the raid on the under-construction battery plant near Savannah.
• She has publicly defended the tip after receiving criticism in the U.S. and South Korea, writing that she will “go down with the ship” despite hate mail.
• DHS confirmed a large-scale operation at the Hyundai site this month, with reports citing roughly 450 arrests and Korean media saying more than 500 people were detained, including about 300 Korean nationals.
• Coverage describes the action as the largest work-site immigration raid in Department of Homeland Security history, with armored vehicles present and workers led out in restraints.
• The episode has drawn rebukes in Seoul and cast doubt on a tariff relief–for–investment deal South Korea negotiated with the U.S., while the claimed link between Branum’s tip and ICE’s decision has not been independently verified.