Gregory Bovino, the controversial former Border Patrol commander, responded to reports that he was considering a presidential run Monday evening by declaring he was wholly dedicated to deporting roughly a third of people in the United States, who he falsely claimed were all migrants.
“Here’s the truth: My one and only priority is deporting the 106 million illegals who are here. That’s it,” Bovino wrote on X in response to a NewsNation report that said he had launched an exploratory committee to determine whether he should run in 2028.
It’s unclear where Bovino got the 106 million number from. Most statistics, including the U.S. Census, determine that roughly 50 million people are immigrants, or 15 percent of the total U.S. population. That percentage may have declined over the last year as well because the Trump administration effectively closed the U.S.-Mexico border and deported hundreds of thousands of people.
But Bovino has been highly critical of the administration’s approach to mass deportations since he left his post as Border Patrol commander-at-large in January, after federal agents fatally shot two U.S. citizens during the aggressive immigration crackdown in Minnesota.
Seeking to appeal to the base of U.S. voters who also believe more undocumented immigrants need to be deported, Bovino said he would run for president if that’s what was required to “liberate America from this invasion and restore our quality of life.”
He also claimed that if he was getting “this much energy,” it is “because 90 percent” of the country wants mass deportations.
A Pew Research Center poll conducted April 6-12 showed that about half of U.S. adults thought the Trump administration was doing too much to deport immigrants who are living in the country illegally.
The Independent has asked Bovino for comment.
Bovino, 56, has launched a Bovino2028 website, but had not registered an official election campaign with the Federal Election Commission as of June 9.
The former Border Patrol commander has already vowed to dramatically reduce immigration in the U.S., though, despite past controversies that eventually led to President Donald Trump demoting him.
Over the last year, Bovino developed a reputation for being combative and forceful after leading immigration enforcement in Operation Metro Surge. He unapologetically authorized his teams to utilize unorthodox methods to detain immigrants and control mass protests, for example, throwing tear gas into crowds.
Critics accused Bovino of using racial profiling to target Hispanic people in California, a claim Bovino denied. In text messages, released by prosecutors, Bovino praised a federal officer who was accused of shooting a U.S. citizen woman five times. More than a dozen incidents that occurred in Minnesota under Bovino’s watch are currently being investigated, according to the state.
He also often generalizes that millions of undocumented immigrants pose a threat to U.S. citizens, elevating an unsubstantiated stereotype that immigrants are more likely to commit crimes – a claim Trump has also made.
A 2024 National Institute of Justice study found that undocumented immigrants were arrested at less than half the rate of native-born U.S. citizens for violent and drug-related crimes. A 2020 research study found that undocumented immigrants had a “considerably lower felony arrest” rate than legal immigrants and native-born U.S. citizens.
Despite that, Bovino has continued to advocate for aggressive deportations, accusing Border Czar Tom Homan of perpetuating “political theater” by only targeting migrants with criminal records.
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