Virginia LULAC Calls on Virginia’s Congressional Delegation to Protect Salvadoran TPS Holders

Virginia LULAC is frustrated and angered that Temporary Protected Status for approximately 170,000 Salvadorans is set to expire on September 9, 2026, threatening the ability of thousands of longtime residents to continue living and working legally in the United States.

Approximately 170,000 Salvadorans living in the United States under Temporary Protected Status (TPS) are facing the expiration of their protections on September 9, 2026, putting their ability to legally work and remain in the country at risk. Many Salvadoran TPS holders have lived in the United States for more than two decades, building careers, purchasing homes, raising families, and becoming deeply rooted in their communities. The impact is particularly significant in Virginia, which is home to an estimated 11,000 Salvadoran TPS holders, including approximately 10,000 workers who contribute an estimated $371 million annually to Virginia's economy. With the deadline approaching, lawmakers and advocates are urging immediate action. Virginia Congressman Eugene Vindman has introduced legislation to extend Salvadoran TPS for 18 months, while Congressman Suhas Subramanyam has also called for an extension and a longer-term pathway to permanent residency for Salvadoran TPS holders. Source: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/self-deport-or-risk-everything-time-running-out-for-salvadorans-in-u-s-with-tps/4149467/

For Virginia, this is not a distant immigration issue. This is our community.

Virginia is home to one of the largest and most deeply established Salvadoran communities in the United States, with especially significant populations throughout Northern Virginia. Communities such as Manassas Park, Manassas, Prince William County, Fairfax County, Alexandria, Loudoun County, Arlington, and surrounding areas have been shaped socially, culturally, and economically by generations of Salvadoran Virginians.

Many Salvadoran TPS holders have lived in the United States for more than two decades. They have built careers and businesses, purchased homes, paid taxes, raised children and grandchildren, and established their lives here. For many, Virginia is not simply where they reside. Virginia is home.

We also recognize that Salvadorans are not alone. Venezuelans and other immigrant communities have faced or continue to face the loss of TPS protections. Virginia LULAC stands with all immigrant families confronting the fear and uncertainty created by the loss of these protections.

Virginia LULAC calls upon Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine and every member of Virginia's congressional delegation to act with urgency. We urge them to work with the Department of Homeland Security and the Administration to protect Salvadoran TPS holders and to support congressional action that extends these protections.

We particularly recognize the efforts already underway by members of Virginia's congressional delegation, including Congressmen Suhas Subramanyam and Eugene Vindman, to pursue an 18-month extension of Salvadoran TPS. We urge every member of Virginia's delegation, regardless of political party, to join them.

But an extension cannot be the end of this conversation.

After more than two decades, Congress must finally confront the reality that thousands of TPS holders have built permanent lives in the United States while remaining trapped in temporary legal status. Virginia LULAC supports pursuing a reasonable pathway to permanent residency for longtime TPS holders who have established their lives, families, and communities in this country.

This should not be a partisan issue. It is a Virginia issue, a community issue, and ultimately a human issue.

Our elected officials at every level of government have a responsibility to represent the people who live in their communities, not only those who are eligible to vote. TPS holders are constituents. They are workers, homeowners, business owners, parents, neighbors, and members of our communities. Their inability to cast a ballot does not make their families less deserving of representation.

And while many TPS holders cannot vote, their children, relatives, friends, neighbors, coworkers, and allies can.

Virginia LULAC will remember who stood with our community when it mattered. We will remember who used their office to speak up and fight for these families, and we will remember those who chose silence.

Our community will carry that memory to the ballot box.

Virginia LULAC will continue advocating for Latino and immigrant communities throughout the Commonwealth and holding those in positions of power accountable when our communities need their leadership.

To our Salvadoran community: you have spent decades building Virginia alongside us. You are our neighbors, our families, and an integral part of our Commonwealth. Virginia LULAC sees you, stands with you, and will continue fighting alongside you.

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About Virginia LULAC

Virginia LULAC is the state chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the nation’s oldest and largest Latino civil rights advocacy organization. Our mission is to advance the economic condition, educational attainment, political influence, health, housing, and civil rights of Hispanic Americans in the Commonwealth of Virginia and beyond.

Contact:

virginialulacofficial@gmail.com | valulac.org