Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte said his administration successfully enforced the state's ban on sanctuary cities, preventing local governments from adopting policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

Speaking on Breitbart News Daily, Gianforte said Montana took action after Helena, the state capital, passed a resolution indicating it would not cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

"I signed a law that said no sanctuary cities, and we had a couple of rogue communities that didn’t want to follow the law," he said.

According to the governor, state officials warned the city that the measure violated Montana law, leading Helena to rescind the resolution.

Gianforte argued that illegal immigration remains a concern for Montana despite its location along the Canadian border.

He said drug trafficking tied to Mexican cartels has affected communities across the state, citing arrests of cartel members on tribal lands and in Bozeman.

The governor contended that fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine entering Montana are primarily routed from Mexico through interstate corridors such as Interstate 15.

While acknowledging that Montana shares the nation's longest border with Canada, Gianforte said the state's most significant drug-trafficking challenges stem from the U.S.-Mexico border rather than the northern frontier.

"So, we work with our federal law enforcement partners, and although Montana’s a northern border state, we’ve seen the effect of the Biden open border policy with drugs flooding into our communities," the governor added.

Montana enacted legislation prohibiting local governments from adopting sanctuary policies that restrict cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

Similar laws have been passed in several Republican-led states, including Texas and Florida.

Helena became a focal point of the debate after city leaders adopted a resolution limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

The city later reversed course following pressure from state officials who argued the measure conflicted with state law.

Gianforte's comments underscore a broader Republican argument that border security affects states across the country, including those far from the U.S.-Mexico border, through the spread of illicit drugs and transnational criminal activity.