As the Trump administration moves forward with terminating Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haiti following the Supreme Court’s recent decision allowing the administration to proceed, a growing number of Republican leaders are publicly opposing the policy and calling for protections to remain in place. The Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), as a non-partisan coalition, applauds these officials in voicing their opposition, even as it positions them as outliers in their party.
From South Florida to New York and Ohio, Republican elected officials have acknowledged what human rights and immigration advocates, business leaders, and humanitarian organizations have long warned: Haiti remains gripped by catastrophic violence, political instability, and humanitarian collapse, making deportations both dangerous and unjust.
Earlier this year, ten House Republicans joined Democrats to pass legislation extending TPS for Haiti through 2029, including Representatives María Elvira Salazar, Carlos Giménez, Mike Lawler, Nicole Malliotakis, and Mario Díaz-Balart. The bipartisan vote reflected growing recognition that TPS holders are legally present, deeply rooted in their communities, and essential to the nation’s workforce.
Just last week, Representative Carlos Giménez called ending TPS for Haitians a “huge mistake,” noting that Haiti is effectively a failed state consumed by gang violence and instability and that deporting people there would be both unsafe and harmful.
Representative Mike Lawler similarly argued that while TPS is intended to be temporary, “sending people back to Haiti to unsafe conditions when they are currently here lawfully is unjust and unwise.”
Representative Nicole Malliotakis warned that TPS holders are filling critical jobs in healthcare and nursing homes, stating that stripping them of their status and deporting them to a country in crisis would be “uncompassionate and misguided.”
Representative María Elvira Salazar has consistently advocated for preserving humanitarian protections and has argued that immigrants who have followed the law and contributed to their communities deserve a fair solution. Representative Mario Díaz-Balart also voted to extend Haiti TPS, joining other Republicans in acknowledging the ongoing humanitarian emergency.
Even beyond Congress, Republican leaders have expressed concern. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has urged the administration to maintain TPS protections, emphasizing that Haitian TPS holders contribute significantly to Ohio’s workforce while conditions in Haiti remain too dangerous for safe return.
“The facts have not changed because the Supreme Court issued its decision,” said Andy Kang, Managing Director of the Fair Immigration Reform Movement. “Haiti remains in the midst of an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe. When Republicans representing immigrant communities, business interests, and healthcare systems are saying these deportations are wrong, Congress and the administration should listen.”
“TPS holders are our neighbors, healthcare workers, caregivers, entrepreneurs, and taxpayers. They have built lives here, and strengthened our communities. Deporting them into one of the most dangerous countries in the world would not make America safer—it would inflict needless suffering while hurting our own economy.”
These elected officials have called on fellow elected leaders to protect Haitian TPS holders and urged the administration to reverse course before hundreds of thousands of families are placed in mortal danger.
The Fair Immigration Reform Movement is a national network made up of state-based membership organizations that has fought for immigrant rights for over 20 years, building out the power of immigrant communities across the country at the local, state, and federal levels and fighting against anti-immigrant policies.