Illinois Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker says the state follows the law. President Donald Trump has often singled out Chicago and Illinois, which have some of the strongest sanctuary laws in the U.S.

The U.S. Justice Department sued the state of Illinois and city of Chicago on Thursday, accusing the Democratic strongholds of unlawfully interfering with Republican President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration and seeking a court order blocking so-called sanctuary laws.

It appears to be the first Justice Dept. lawsuit against local officials for allegedly interfering with the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.