Southwest border apprehensions have plummeted by 95% compared to the Biden administration's average, with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reporting a full fiscal year without releasing migrants into the country, according to preliminary figures released Thursday. This represents a historic low in illegal crossings.

Retired Yuma Sector U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Border Patrol Chief Chris Clem recalled the stark contrast to earlier periods when agents were overwhelmed. "They just started walking through the agriculture fields. They started running through town," Clem said, describing the surge in December 2021. "They started going to the food bank. They started knocking on people’s doors at all hours of the nights."

Clem credited stronger enforcement and the prospect of deportation for the decline but cautioned that these gains could be threatened by future political changes. "There are a lot of policy decisions that can be really jammed up by a Congress that’s gung-ho to overturn what this president has done," he warned, noting that shifts in congressional control or a future presidential administration could impact enforcement through funding and policy.

Preliminary DHS figures for fiscal year 2026 show approximately 98,087 southwest border apprehensions, a stark decrease from the annual average of over 1.8 million during the Biden administration. This averages out to about 270 apprehensions per day across the southwest border, compared to roughly 5,000 per day under the previous administration.

In Yuma alone, Clem recounted daily arrivals increasing from about 25 in December 2020 to over 1,000 by December 2021, with daily arrivals nearing 1,500 during a difficult three-day period that month. "That was really when it, you know, was the most critical for me because we had the true community impact of a failed border security policy out of Washington, D.C.," he stated. He described the situation as being outnumbered, "literally 100 to one."

The DHS data indicates that the entire fiscal year's apprehension total is less than half of the 249,740 recorded in the Biden administration's busiest single month. Furthermore, September marked the 17th consecutive month without Border Patrol releasing migrants into the country, completing the agency's first full fiscal year with zero releases.

Clem explained that the expectation of release had been a significant selling point for smugglers during the previous administration, with their pitch being, "If you get to the border, you’re gonna be processed, and you’ll be let go." He argued that altering this expectation is key to deterring illegal crossings, stating, "They know that they’re not gonna be processed and released, which was the status quo under the Biden-Harris administration."

White House border czar Tom Homan highlighted that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations within the country complement border enforcement. Homan stated that ICE recorded its highest single-day deportation total since Trump's return to office and conducted more removals in September than in any other month, although specific totals were not provided. "We are deportation-maxxing—firing on all cylinders while still expanding our capabilities to ramp up removals beyond current record-breaking levels," Homan posted on social media.

DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin asserted in a statement, "President Trump promised the American people a secure border, and the data proves he delivered. The results could not be clearer: strong enforcement works."

Despite the record lows, Clem cautioned that the threat from smugglers and individuals attempting to evade detection remains. "There are always gonna be that risk where somebody does sneak through. Who is that person?" he asked. He emphasized that unclear or inconsistent policies can be exploited by smuggling organizations. "When our policies aren’t clear and transparent, and we’re not holding ourselves accountable, it’s a marketing tool for the smuggling organizations," he said.

Clem concluded by differentiating between addressing immigration policy and maintaining border security. "We have an immigration issue we need to address. We need to find a way to retain and recruit those that are here, that are foreign nationals that want to contribute. But none of that should matter when it comes down to securing the border. We should always be looking at keeping America safe."