Voto Latino Urges Trump Administration to Repatriate All Immigrants Wrongfully Deported to El Salvador

Washington, D.C. — Voto Latino issues a statement on the return of Kilmar Garcia, a Maryland resident who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador and held in a maximum-security prison under inhumane conditions. 

The return of Kilmar Garcia is not something to celebrate—this never should have happened. Kilmar—and many others like him—were denied due process and deported without ever having their day in court. Their fundamental rights were violated by the very system meant to protect them. Voto Latino applauds the courts for recognizing the need to bring Kilmar Garcia back to the United States, a crucial step in restoring faith in the justice system.

The fact that individuals can be torn from their lives and sent to prison without trial, legal representation, or recourse is a devastating indictment of the mass, indiscriminate deportation policies implemented under the Trump administration.

A 60 Minutes investigation previously revealed that numerous individuals were wrongfully deported to El Salvador, where many remain imprisoned under brutal and degrading conditions. These cases remain unresolved, and their suffering continues.

Voto Latino urges the U.S. government to return all individuals who were wrongfully deported without delay, and to provide them with restitution, legal assistance, and trauma-informed care to begin addressing the harm they have endured.

Voto Latino stands with all those affected and calls on leaders at every level of government—including Congress—to take urgent action, uphold the right to due process, and ensure that no one else endures this kind of abuse again.

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Voto Latino is a civic advocacy organization dedicated to educating and empowering the next generation of Latino voters while working to build a more inclusive and representative democracy. Since its founding, Voto Latino has registered nearly two million voters. In 2024, the organization took legal action to protect voting rights, filing multiple lawsuits in Texas, Arizona, and North Carolina to safeguard access to the ballot ahead of the elections.