The U.S.-Mexico border stretches 1,954 miles, crossing four states reaching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean with a variety of terrains: Texas natural border the Rio Grande River, as well as scattered urban areas and widespread deserts. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) recently said the U.S.-Mexico border was the deadliest international border crossing in the world, as reported by Al Jazeera.
Since Joe Biden took office, the number of illegal immigrants flooding the southern border has increased at exponential rates. A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) report in May said known got-aways, those seen on cameras or with thermal imagery but not apprehended, spiked 303% between 2019 and 2022 from 150,000 to 600,000.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported 2.8 million illegal immigrant encounters during fiscal year 2023, an increase over the 2.7 million in 2022, which was nearly 1 million over 2021. In September alone 260,000 illegal immigrant encounters occurred.
Many Americans believe immigration is a “good thing.” We’re a nation made up of immigrants. However, according to a July U.S. News and World Report, that number is declining. The article noted just over half of Republicans and Independents (67%) and 87% of Democrats agree on immigration being a “good thing,” but those numbers have decreased over the last two years.
During 2020 the call for decreasing immigration dropped to a record low of 28%, however, the percentage of respondents believing immigration should be reduced has now increased to 41%. U.S. News and World Report said 73% of Republicans and 18% of Democrats want immigration decreased and noted that all three mainstream political parties preferred a decrease in immigration until 2012 when Democrats began moving the opposite direction.
Fox News also recently reported thousands of “special interest aliens” from Middle Eastern Counties designated as “promoting or protecting” terrorist organization that had been apprehended at the southwest border. CBP also reported apprehending 151 individuals on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) terrorist watch list, setting an all-time record high. Additional concerns about national security risks have ensued.
How will an open border affect the electorate? In one respect, the millions and millions of extra individuals could potentially add votes in ballot boxes. However, U.S. law prohibits non-citizens from voting according to Ballotpedia, but reports in recent years show some cities moving toward bending, if not breaking, the law as reported by the Florida Phoenix.
Some voters are critical of the government’s southern border crisis. Almost half (47%) of Americans view it as a big problem. That number has increased from 38% last year according to Pew Research. Only 35% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning Independents, along with 11% of Republicans and Republican leaners, rate the Biden’s border performance positively.
Voters who wish to see immigration slowed or those who see a national security risk are likely to vote for candidates who show signs of reversing the open border policy of the current government.
Robyn Spradlin is a freelance journalist working as a contributor for Christian News Journal covering news and politics on the national and state levels. She has worked as a copywriter for Victory News on the Victory Channel since 2022. Robyn has an BA in Communication Studies and MA in Journalism from Regent University and is a member of the Evangelical Press Association. She is an author, evangelistic minister and a musician.