Labor advocates in Hawaii are celebrating a wave of political wins they see as good news for working people and immigrant communities.

• Democrats held onto control of the state legislature and gained in Congress, which organizers credit to a wave of worker and union turnout.
• Advocates are pushing Washington for a higher minimum wage, broader health care access, and paid sick leave, arguing federal policy changes ripple down to local workers fast.
• One advocate said the election also sent a message against the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, pointing to farm and service workers across Oahu and the Big Island who fear being profiled.
• A new state law bars local police from being deputized to help ICE, and Oahu voters backed a city charter change limiting Honolulu police involvement in immigration enforcement to cases required by law.
• Despite those protections, advocates remain on alert after a spike in ICE arrests and detentions last year, saying federal agents still have wide reach to act.

Outlook: Labor groups plan to keep pressing state and federal lawmakers on wages, health care, and immigrant protections while watching for renewed ICE activity.