‘DEMOCRATS WILL HELP US’: Migrant Caravan Heads North After Midterms as Trump Warns Border Will Stay Shut

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Just days after Democrats reclaimed control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections, a migrant caravan began making its way north through Mexico toward the United States, with some participants openly expressing hope that the election results could create new opportunities to enter the country.

The White House sounded the alarm Thursday, pointing to interviews with migrants who believe the incoming Democrat congressional majorities will loosen immigration restrictions and pave the way for their arrival.

“We believe the Democrats will help us,” said Cesar Sandoval, a 47-year-old Nicaraguan migrant who told Reuters he had been deported from the United States just months earlier.

The caravan, dubbed “God With Us,” departed the southern Mexican city of Tapachula earlier this week. Reuters reported that a Chiapas government source initially estimated the group at approximately 1,500 people, including families traveling with young children.

The timing has given the Trump administration fresh ammunition in its immigration battle with congressional Democrats, several of whom have already begun demanding sweeping changes to federal immigration enforcement following their election victories.

Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley declared Thursday that the incoming majority must “abolish ICE,” while Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib issued a similar demand earlier this week.

Illinois Congresswoman Delia Ramirez went even further, calling for Democrats to dismantle the Department of Homeland Security, while House Democrat Leader Hakeem Jeffries pledged to bring an end to what he described as President Trump’s mass deportation operation.

The proposals have become a central point of contention in Washington. Although abolishing ICE would not automatically eliminate border enforcement or change federal immigration law, the White House argues that such rhetoric sends a dangerous signal to prospective migrants considering the journey north.

President Trump responded Thursday with a warning to both the migrants and Mexican authorities.

“Here we go again!” Trump wrote, threatening to immediately double tariffs on Mexican imports if the country fails to stop caravans traveling toward the American border.

The president insisted that the migrants would not be admitted, regardless of the shifting political landscape in Washington.

Border czar Tom Homan delivered an equally emphatic message, reminding Democrats that their congressional victories did not give them control of the executive branch.

“Congress may be more blue, Texas may be more blue, but the White House is red, bright red,” Homan declared Wednesday, promising that the administration would not release arriving caravan members into the United States.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum disputed the suggestion that large caravans were approaching the American border, saying Thursday that a group of approximately 600 migrants in Chiapas had largely dispersed. She maintained that no migrant caravan has reached the U.S. border since Trump returned to office in January 2025.

For Nevada, where immigration enforcement and border security have remained significant political issues, the dispute offers an early preview of the battles awaiting the state’s congressional delegation.

Nevada Democrats Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford will return to Washington as members of the incoming House majority, where debates over immigration enforcement funding, deportation policy and oversight of the Trump administration are expected to become major legislative flashpoints.

The political irony is difficult to miss. Democrats have spent the days following their midterm victories celebrating a new congressional majority, while some migrants thousands of miles away have interpreted that victory as a potential invitation to attempt entry into the United States.

Whether those expectations translate into any meaningful policy changes remains uncertain. Democrats can pursue legislation and use their oversight powers, but Trump’s administration continues to control federal immigration enforcement.

For now, the caravan has exposed a fundamental disagreement over the country’s immigration future, with Democrats divided over how aggressively to restrict enforcement agencies and the Trump administration promising that the southern border will remain closed to unauthorized entry.

The midterms may have changed the balance of power on Capitol Hill, but the White House is making one thing abundantly clear: Donald Trump is still president.

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