Chicago Could See THOUSANDS of Illegal Migrants Arriving by Bus for Democratic National Convention
Chicago has long been a hot spot for migrants entering the U.S. illegally. Now the city is bracing for a surge of migrants ahead of the Democratic National Convention.
In recent weeks, the administration of Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson said the city could expect as many as 25,000 migrants around the convention.
Although that expectation has now diminished considerably, the city still expects to receive new migrants. The office of Texas Governor Greg Abbott confirmed that buses are coming.
“Until President Biden and Border Commissioner Harris step in and do their job to secure the border, Texas will continue to transport migrants to safe cities across the country, like Chicago, to provide much-needed relief to our overburdened border cities,” a spokesperson for Texas Governor Greg Abbott told DailyMail.com.
Buses used to warm up migrants are parked outside the “designated landing zone,” an area the city uses to receive migrants transported by bus from Texas, on January 30, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. The city was expecting 25,000 migrants to arrive ahead of the DNC, but that number is expected to be around 750-1,000
Mayor Johnson recently indicated at a press conference that Chicago is currently hosting approximately 5,600 migrants in local shelters.
Many of these newcomers have been bused into the city from busy border crossings in Texas.
Johnson addressed Abbott directly, saying at a news conference: “We certainly hope that Governor Abbott finds Jesus Christ, his Lord and Savior, and (doesn’t) do that.”
However, local shelters expect dozens of people to arrive before the Democratic National Convention, but that’s still far from the city’s estimate of 25,000.
“We realistically expect that next week we will see 750-1,000 new migrants arriving, if that happens at all,” Andre Gordillo, director of the New Vecinos Program, a migrant support group, told DailyMail.com.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott will continue to transport migrants to shelter cities such as Chicago, a spokesman told DailyMail.com
Venezuelan migrants board a bus in Chicago after recently arriving in the city
The Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago is expected to draw 50,000 attendees to the city
Gordillo said the expected number of new arrivals is “very large,” but he doesn’t think the new migrants “will have an impact on the operations of the DNC.”
“Although I know it will be a big topic of conversation,” he added.
In less than two years, more than 46,500 migrants have found their way to the Chicago sanctuary, city data shows.
In January, Texas was responsible for busing about 31,000 of these migrants to the Windy City.
The Lone Star State initiative has also sent more than 10,000 migrants to other hosting cities, including New York, Denver and Washington, D.C.
The increased influx of migrants just across the border is also having a major impact on Chicago’s finances.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks on a podium unveiled ahead of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center. His administration expected up to 25,000 migrants to arrive around the time of the convention
Workers set up fencing around the United Center in preparation for the DNC
City data shows that city taxpayers have spent nearly $150 million on migrant spending since August 2022.
But the number of migrants arriving is declining, Gordillo told DailyMail.com.
“The lower number of new arrivals is the result of an executive order President Biden signed in June.”
‘While that decision is being challenged in court, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reports that encounters at southwest border crossings dropped 29 percent from May to June.’
“So we haven’t seen the thousands of people crossing the border like we did earlier this year or last fall.”