During the 2024 electoral campaign, the issue of unaccompanied minors gained greater public relevance. Trump and Homan repeatedly cited estimates that spoke of more than 300,000 minors whose whereabouts were unknown, noting that many could be at risk.
Political pressure intensified after it emerged that Democratic President Biden had expressed frustration to his own cabinet over the inability to manage the increase in arrivals of migrant children.
Border authorities also reported a notable increase in encounters at the southwest border during the past year, with more than 301,000 cases recorded in December, followed by a significant drop to 11,710 in October, according to data from Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
The rescue of the minors and the operations for their identification and protection remain a central point in the migration debate. Child protection organizations have insisted on the need to strengthen tracking and verification systems to prevent children from falling again into risky situations, while investigations continue into the circumstances in which many of them were initially placed.
