Democratic candidates in several competitive congressional races are publicly criticizing former President Joe Biden’s border record as immigration remains a major midterm issue.
The shift is unfolding in Texas, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Iowa and South Carolina as Democrats attempt to separate themselves from Biden’s immigration policies, though most of them said nothing about it when the former president’s reversal of President Trump’s strict first-term immigration enforcement policies led to an estimated 10 million-plus illegal border crossings over four years.
Republicans have repeatedly highlighted the surge in illegal border crossings during Biden’s presidency while tying Democratic candidates to his administration’s policies.
Democrats in competitive races are increasingly responding by acknowledging problems under Biden while simultaneously criticizing President Donald Trump’s enforcement policies.
Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico has made that strategy particularly explicit while campaigning against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton.
“I called out Joe Biden for failing us on the border,” Talarico says in an advertisement airing during the campaign’s closing stretch.
Talarico made a similar argument in July while unveiling an immigration plan during a campaign appearance near the southern border.
“Joe Biden and his administration failed us on our southern border,” Talarico said while presenting himself as a “border security Democrat.”
His proposal includes hiring additional Border Patrol personnel and expanding surveillance technology while creating legal immigration pathways and criticizing some Trump enforcement tactics.
Kansas Democratic Senate candidate Adam Hamilton has been even more direct while challenging Republican Sen. Roger Marshall.
“Immigration at the border under Biden was a disaster,” Hamilton said during a recent debate with Marshall.
Hamilton said Biden’s policies helped create the current immigration situation, although he also argued Trump’s subsequent enforcement response had harmed Kansans.
Pennsylvania Democratic House candidate Paige Cognetti similarly criticized the previous administration during a Thursday debate in her race against Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan.
“The Biden administration failed at the border,” Cognetti said while calling for both border security and legal pathways toward citizenship.
Cognetti is challenging Bresnahan in a working-class Scranton-area district considered among the competitive House contests being watched nationally.
South Carolina Democratic Senate candidate Annie Andrews has also distanced herself from her party’s previous handling of immigration.
“Democrats have failed on the border,” Andrews said during a debate as she sought to establish a tougher position on immigration enforcement.
Iowa Democratic Senate candidate Josh Turek traveled more than 800 miles to Laredo, Texas, to film a campaign advertisement focused on border security.
Turek emphasized his willingness to work across party lines and said he would cooperate with Trump when their positions overlap.
“I voted with Republicans to allow law enforcement to arrest and deport criminals,” Turek says in the advertisement.
In another campaign spot, Turek promised to work with anyone on immigration, “including President Trump, to secure the border.”
Texas Democratic House candidate Johnny Garcia has likewise criticized Biden while campaigning in the redrawn 35th Congressional District.
“We’ve also gotten to see, unfortunately, how Biden got it wrong on the border,” Garcia said during a recent candidate forum.
Garcia simultaneously opposes aspects of Trump’s immigration raids, arguing that aggressive enforcement can damage communities and the economy.
The coordinated shift reflects the political damage Democrats suffered over immigration during Biden’s presidency and the 2024 presidential election.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded more than 8 million encounters along the U.S.-Mexico border between 2021 and 2025.
Biden eventually tightened enforcement significantly, but immigration had already become one of his administration’s biggest political vulnerabilities.
Trump capitalized heavily on border security during his successful 2024 campaign, promising tougher enforcement and large-scale deportations after returning to office.
Since then, illegal border crossings have fallen sharply, although Trump’s broader immigration enforcement campaign has generated substantial controversy and public opposition.
Democratic candidates are therefore attempting to occupy a middle position by supporting stronger border security while opposing enforcement tactics they consider excessive.
Even Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, one of the party’s most progressive major candidates, is now emphasizing the importance of maintaining secure borders.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
