DHS Secretary Kristi Noem Claims 1.6 Million Illegal Immigrants ‘Have Left’ U.S. in First 200 Days

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that approximately 1.6 million undocumented immigrants have left the United States during her first 200 days in office, citing this as a major shield for taxpayer resources and safety.

What We Know:

• Secretary Noem publicly stated that “in less than 200 days, 1.6 MILLION illegal immigrants have left the United States population.” She described this as “massive,” promising benefits such as safer streets, reduced pressure on schools and hospitals, and better opportunities for Americans.

• The figure is based on estimates from the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), which noted a decline in the unauthorized immigrant population from 15.8 million in January to 14.2 million in July.

• CIS cautions that their estimate may overstate the decline: heightened enforcement may have made undocumented immigrants more reluctant to participate in surveys, skewing results.

• DHS said it’s not solely reliant on CIS data; it asserts that its own figures from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) align with the trend.

• The administration has rolled out multiple initiatives encouraging self-deportation: ending the CBP One app, launching CBP Home with self-deportation features, offering $1,000 plus free travel, and forgiving related civil fines.

• AllSides summarized coverage of the announcement, emphasizing both the administration’s framing of the numbers and criticism that the data may be preliminary or flawed.

DHS under Secretary Noem is framing the reported 1.6 million decline in undocumented immigration as a policy success—with incentives and enforcement driving results—though experts caution the number may be overstated due to methodological limitations and data uncertainty.