As the 2024 U.S. Presidential election approaches, the US.-Mexico border is once again a central campaign issue. Both Democrats and Republicans advocate for stronger border policies to address the ongoing crisis at the border. Donald Trump has pledged for a zero-tolerance policy on migrants, which would likely lead to a shift in Washington’s relation with Latin America. Harris, on the other has made efforts to present herself as a strong candidate on border security, emphasising her record in prosecuting human traffickers and drug cartels in California. Additionally, she highlights her work as Biden’s vicepresident, where she’s been pushing for regional policies, specifically on the ‘root causes’ of migration in South American countries. As Biden’s presidency comes to an end, his handling of border security was among his worst-rated issues in polls. While Democrats expected a return to a less criminalising migration policy, illegal border crossings soared in the months after Biden took office, reaching an all-time high of 2.2 million crossings in 2022. Facing domestic pressure, Biden asserted that immigration laws would still be enforced and opted to maintain Title 42, a policy expanded by Trump during the pandemic, which enabled the swift expulsion of border crossers. Once Biden’s administration announced it would cease applying “Title 42” in May 2023, migration figures spiked, leading to the administration’s first border emergency. Soon after, Biden assigned Harris to lead a new effort to address the “root causes” of Central American emigration, including economic, political and security issues that prompted the on-going migration crisis.

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