Venezuelans on the Mexican border fear a wave of migration amid post-election crisis

Shelter directors and Venezuelans stranded on Mexico’s northern border, where they already represent more than a quarter of irregular migration, fear that the “unprecedented wave of migration” that opposition leader María Corina Machado warned about in light of Venezuela’s post-election crisis will become more consolidated.

Fear is particularly felt in Ciudad Juárez, the epicenter of the migration crisis between Mexico and the United States, where thousands of migrants awaiting their CBP One appointment with U.S. authorities have expressed to EFE their concern that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will be reelected.

This is the case of Viesmer Jiménez, a Venezuelan in a shelter in the center of the border city, where he says he already expects a wave of compatriots fleeing that country after the elections on July 28.

“Unfortunately, with the elections that have taken place in Venezuela, it is obvious that a third quarter of the country will leave. First, because of the economy and the devalued currency in Venezuela, there is no future for anyone, for young people there is no education or security,” said Jimenez.

A crisis that worsens

Before the elections, questioned by the opposition and dozens of countries, the Venezuelan exodus was already felt in Mexico, where the Migration Policy Unit reported 200,289 Venezuelans “in an irregular migratory situation” in the first half of 2024, 215% more than reported in the same period of the previous year.

Venezuela is now the main country of origin for irregular migrants in Mexico, where they represent almost three out of ten, 29%, of the record of more than 712,000 detected in the first half of the year.

Machado, who supports opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, warned Mexican media two weeks ago of an “unprecedented wave of migration” if Maduro clings to power.

This feeling is shared by migrants like Neiro Palmar, who fears for the family he left behind, specifically his mother.

“Yes, we migrants can say that this is why one leaves there to seek a better future for one’s family, for those who come here now,” he said.

He believes that “the wave is coming to Mexico” and that “it will probably happen with the government that is in power again, most likely.”

Is Mexico prepared?

Pastor Juan Ramón Fierro, who runs the Buen Samaritano shelter, said that no country is ready for the departure of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans.

“I believe that none of the countries are prepared, because they will have to cross several countries to get to the Mexican border, there in the south, and then we are not prepared, even though there are 25 shelters here on the border, we do not have enough capacity to receive so many people,” he said.

The migrant defender fears that the humanitarian crisis will worsen with the violence of the protests in Venezuela, where the Attorney General’s Office reported 2,400 detainees and 25 deaths.

“I think there are many detainees, probably many dead, and they have not reported the total number because this is a situation of a political crisis, so they are keeping all of that,” he said.

Mexico / EFE