- Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar says Trump’s immigration enforcement has gone too far in a new campaign ad.
- The ad aired in Miami on September 17, 2026, targeting voters in Florida’s 27th District.
- Salazar cited a July figure that 50 percent of detainees had no criminal record.
Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar released a campaign ad Thursday saying President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts have “gone too far,” breaking with the president from her South Florida district.
The ad began airing in the Miami market on September 17, 2026. Salazar represents Florida’s 27th Congressional District, which is based in Miami-Dade County.
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She addressed Trump directly.
“Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far.”
Salazar also cautioned the president about the people advising him on policy. Her message linked the crackdown to a possible loss of support among Hispanic voters who backed Trump in 2024.
“Be careful what your advisers are telling you about immigration policy,” Salazar said. “The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today.”
The ad places a Republican criticism of deportation policy inside a district that supported Trump. Trump carried the district by 15 points in 2024.
Salazar has represented the seat since 2020. The district leans Republican but remains politically competitive, and she is described as a Latina Republican lawmaker facing a competitive reelection race in Florida.
The ad turns a local reelection fight into a warning for Trump
Her criticism arrives as Republicans worry that the president’s immigration crackdown could weaken the party with Hispanic voters before the midterms. Salazar’s intervention gives that concern a television platform in the Miami area.
The dispute centers on enforcement. Her campaign message criticizes Trump’s deportation agenda without calling for amnesty, according to the language used in the ad.
Salazar framed the issue as a question of how immigrants are treated.
“You can be for immigration when Lincoln was for slavery and Reagan was for communism. I’m not talking about giving them amnesty. I’m talking about giving them a dignified life in this promised land.”
The comparison was part of the same appeal to Trump. Salazar argued that supporting immigration does not require accepting amnesty.
A detention statistic supplies the ad’s sharpest factual claim
Salazar also cited a figure from July. She argued that half of the people detained had no criminal record.
Her wording was exact: “50 percent of the 50,000 people that were detained had no criminal record.”
The figure supports her broader argument that the administration’s approach has swept too broadly. The ad did not limit its criticism to a particular category of detainee or enforcement action.
That makes the statistic central to her political case. She used it alongside the warning that Hispanic voters feel betrayed after helping Trump return to the White House.
| District detail | Figure or description |
|---|---|
| Congressional seat | Florida’s 27th Congressional District |
| Salazar’s tenure | Since 2020 |
| Trump’s 2024 margin | 15 points |
| Ad placement | Miami television market |
The district’s political profile gives the message an audience beyond Washington. It is Republican-leaning, yet competitive enough to make voter reaction part of Salazar’s reelection calculation.
Her ad therefore combines two arguments. The first attacks the reach of the enforcement campaign. The second warns that the policy could damage the party’s standing with Hispanic voters.
The message puts the party’s Hispanic strategy on television
Salazar’s break does not amount to a call for ending immigration enforcement. Instead, she argues that the administration should reconsider how far it goes and how advisers present the policy to Trump.
That distinction appears in the ad’s language. She criticized enforcement, rejected amnesty, and called for immigrants to receive “a dignified life in this promised land.”
The campaign released the spot on Thursday, September 17, 2026, while Republicans were weighing the electoral risks of a harder immigration posture. Its immediate audience was South Florida television viewers.
Its political audience was broader: Republicans deciding whether the enforcement strategy that energized Trump’s base could also cost support among Hispanic voters who backed him in 2024.
This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Consult a qualified immigration attorney about your specific case.
