CUBA · MIGRATION
Key Facts
- —What is happening A migrant caravan of roughly 500 to 700 people left Tapachula in southern Mexico on the evening of Tuesday, 20 October, walking north along the Pacific coast highway, and two Cuban news sites say Cubans joined.
- —Why it matters The marchers hope the US congressional elections on Tuesday, 3 November will ease entry rules, yet the US border stays closed to irregular entry and Mexico has stopped about 20 earlier caravans.
- —The numbers Counts run from about 500 to more than 600 people, organisations put the migrants stranded in Tapachula above 60,000, and no count of the Cubans in the group has been published.
- —Who is who The group is mostly Honduran, with Guatemalans, Salvadorans and Nicaraguans, with Cubans, Haitians and Venezuelans named only by Cuban news sites, escorted by Mexico’s National Guard, the federal migrant protection group Beta Sur and local police.
- —What to watch Whether Mexico’s immigration agency hands out transit documents, as it did after breaking up the previous caravan on Monday, 12 October, or stops this group before it leaves Chiapas.
- —Power Index Cuba ranks 14th of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 22.5 points (October 2026 edition).
- —What it means for you Illegal entry to the United States still risks detention and deportation, and joining a caravan does not change that, so no surge at the US border is implied by this march.
A caravan of about 600 migrants set out from Tapachula on 20 October, hoping US rules will change after the November elections. Two Cuban news sites say Cubans joined, which Mexican outlets do not confirm.
A new migrant caravan of about 600 people left Tapachula in southern Mexico on Tuesday, 20 October. Its members hope the US congressional elections of Tuesday, 3 November will ease the rules that keep them out.
The US embassy in Honduras says joining a caravan does not help anyone enter the United States, Infobae reported. Infobae and the Mexican outlets do not mention Cubans, and only two Cuban news sites say they joined.
Who Left Tapachula on Tuesday
The group set off from Tapachula, the main city on Mexico’s border with Guatemala, on the evening of Tuesday, 20 October. Quadratin Chiapas, a state news outlet, put the start at about 5:30 p.m.
National Guard officers, the federal migrant protection group Beta Sur and local police escorted the walkers to the coastal highway. Quadratin said the escort aimed to prevent accidents, because the group would walk at night, probably in rain.
Counts differ from outlet to outlet. Quadratin described roughly half a thousand people, while Infobae and Marcrix Noticias reported more than 600.
Periodico Cubano, a Cuban news site, cites Mexican press for a range of 400 to 700 people after departure. The Mexican reports found do not give a nationality breakdown beyond the main groups.
Infobae says most marchers are Honduran, with Guatemalans, Salvadorans and people of other nationalities. Many are families who walked from San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and joined up in Tapachula.
Diario de Chiapas reported on 18 October that more than 200 people arrived on Thursday and about 100 on Saturday. The migrants rested at the Bicentenario park, where they received measles vaccinations and medical checks.
What Cuban News Sites Say About Cubans
Periodico Cubano and Directorio Cubano, two Cuban news sites, report that Cubans, Haitians and Venezuelans walk beside the Central Americans. Directorio Cubano states plainly that its estimate of the group does not say how many Cubans are in it.
Periodico Cubano says the journalist Julio Rosas spoke to several marchers about their hopes for the US vote. The Breitbart report it cites was not opened for this article.
The Cuban site also says Cubans have joined earlier marches this year, including one of about 500 people in March. It gives a figure of 20,000 to 25,000 Cubans stranded in Tapachula in August, without naming a source.
Both Cuban outlets stress that walking in a group does not give refuge, a transit permit or entry to the United States. For Cubans, the United States has also become a harder place to stay, as ICE arrests of Cubans have risen sharply.
Why the Marchers Are Walking Now
Joblessness and slow paperwork are the reasons most often given. Quadratin reports that most members say they want to stay in Mexico because of poverty, few jobs and insecurity at home.
Olvin Colin, a Honduran aged 38, carried his four-year-old son on his shoulders, Marcrix Noticias reported. He said Trump does not have the last word and God does, and that he hopes November’s US elections bring change.
Directorio Cubano says some marchers expect the Democratic Party to do well on 3 November and tie that to easier migration rules. That is a hope voiced by travellers, it stresses, not a change in entry requirements.
Pueblo Sin Fronteras, a migrant rights group, said last week that mass movements in election periods may serve political interests, Infobae reported. The group did not say whether that applies to this caravan.
Some marchers plan to settle in Mexico instead, Directorio Cubano says, naming Oaxaca and Nuevo León, with Monterrey as a job target. The migrants have asked the government of President Claudia Sheinbaum for transit documents so they can travel north by bus.
How Mexico Has Handled Earlier Caravans
Mexico has stopped every similar group of recent years. At least 20 left Tapachula in the past two years, and all were dissolved before they left Chiapas and Oaxaca, Infobae reported.
The latest, Fe y Esperanza con Dios, was broken up on Monday, 12 October, near the Oaxaca border. Members were offered transit papers, as an earlier report on that caravan explains.
Organisations in the area estimate that more than 60,000 migrants remain stranded in Tapachula, Infobae reported. Many have no work and are waiting for answers from the Mexican refugee commission, Comar.
What the United States Says
The US embassy in Honduras wrote on X that a caravan does not ease US entry, Infobae and KCH FM reported. It added that the border is closed to irregular entry and that people who cross can be detained and deported.
El Salvador’s US embassy gave a similar warning on Tuesday, 6 October, covered in an earlier report on the embassy message. The posts reached people who may still be deciding whether to leave.
What It Means for US Readers
A walking group of 600 people in southern Mexico is no sign of a surge at the US border. Every caravan of the past two years has been stopped within Chiapas or Oaxaca, Infobae reported.
The story shows how US election politics reaches migrants far from the border. More coverage sits in the Cuba section and the Mexico section.
What Is Not Known
Whether Cubans took part is unconfirmed, because Infobae, Quadratin Chiapas, Marcrix Noticias and KCH FM do not mention them. Their presence rests on two Cuban news sites that cite Breitbart and Milenio, neither of which was opened.
The size of the group is unclear, with counts from about 500 to more than 600. No statement from Mexico’s immigration agency or from President Sheinbaum’s government on this caravan was found.
The US embassy post on X was not opened directly and is quoted through Infobae and KCH FM. Whether any marcher will reach the US border is unknown.
What Comes Next
The caravan is on the coastal highway in Chiapas, and earlier groups there passed Huixtla and Arriaga before the Oaxaca border. The key test is whether Mexico issues transit documents or breaks the group up, as it did on 12 October.
The US elections follow on Tuesday, 3 November. Nothing in the reports shows that the result would change US entry rules for the marchers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where did the new migrant caravan start?
It left Tapachula, a city in Chiapas near the Guatemalan border, on the evening of Tuesday, 20 October. It is walking north on the Pacific coast highway.
How many people are in the caravan?
Counts range from roughly 500 to more than 600 people, with Periodico Cubano citing 400 to 700. No count of the Cubans has been published.
Are Cubans in the caravan?
Only two Cuban news sites say Cubans walk alongside Hondurans and other nationalities. No Mexican outlet checked confirms it.
Why are the marchers hoping for the US elections?
Some say they expect the 3 November congressional vote to change conditions for migrants. The US embassy in Honduras says a caravan does not help anyone enter.
Will the caravan reach the United States?
No earlier caravan of the past two years has got beyond Chiapas and Oaxaca, Infobae reported. Mexico broke up the latest on 12 October.
Sources: Quadratin Chiapas, 20 October; Infobae, 21 October; Marcrix Noticias, 21 October; KCH FM, 21 October; Diario de Chiapas, 18 October; Periodico Cubano, 21 October; Directorio Cubano (all accessed 22 October 2026).
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief