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Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

No.

Authorities estimate the number of undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. during the Biden-Harris administration and remained at far less than the 25 million that Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance claimed.

Vance said Aug. 28, 2024, in De Pere, Wisconsin:

“Kamala Harris let in 25 million illegal aliens … the 25 million people who are here in this country illegally.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 10 million migrant encounters — one person one or more times — from February 2021 through July 2024.

However, millions were turned away, returned or deported.

The nonprofit Migration Policy Institute estimates there were 6 million entries between January 2021 and April 2024.

Customs and Border Protection also estimated about 2 million “got-aways” — border crossers who evaded authorities — 385,707 in 2021, 737,244 in 2022, and 694,685 in 2023.

Vance’s spokesperson cited conservative media reports, including one saying there may have been 1 million got-aways in one year.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

WLUK-TV FOX 11: JD Vance rallies voters in Wisconsin

U.S. Customs and Border Protection: Nationwide Encounters

News release: Chairman Green for RealClearPolitics: No, Biden and Harris’ Border Crisis Is Not Over

USA Today: No, 51M ‘illegals’ have not entered US under Biden, Harris | Fact check

PolitiFact: There aren’t 20 million to 30 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally, as Sen. Marco Rubio claimed

Google Docs: Migration Policy Institute Aug. 29, 2024

U.S. Department of Homeland Security: Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Justification

U.S. Department of Homeland Security: Fiscal Year 2024 Congressional Justification

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Tom Kertscher joined Wisconsin Watch as a full-time reporter in October 2024. He started as a fact checker in January 2023 and contributes to our collaboration with the The Gigafact Project to fight misinformation online. Kertscher is a former longtime newspaper reporter, including at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He is a contributing writer for Milwaukee Magazine and sports freelancer for The Associated Press.