114 Percent Jump in Illegal Immigrant Arrests at Northern Border: GOP

Illegal immigrant encounters at the northern border jumped from 27,180 in 2021 to 189,402 in 2023 under the Biden administration.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas holds a press conference at a U.S. Border Patrol station in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Jan. 8, 2024. John Moore/Getty Images

The number of illegal immigrants arrested at America’s northern border has more than doubled this fiscal year, with Republicans putting the blame on Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

“Since October 1st, 2023, the Northern Border has seen a record number of illegal immigrants and drug seizures, most notably fentanyl, by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP),” said a March 25 letter from 22 GOP lawmakers to Mr. Mayorkas. In the first four months of fiscal year 2024, Border Patrol apprehended 4,772 individuals from the northern border—a 114 percent increase from the same period last fiscal, lawmakers said citing CBP data.