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The November 5 U.S. presidential election is a day away, and some Quebecers living along the U.S. border will be closely following the results. Others told The Gazette they didn’t care who won.

American policy has often affected Quebec communities close to the border more than others, particularly when it comes to changes in immigration policies. It was near Hemmingford that former President Donald Trump’s policies sparked an influx of migrants to Roxham Road.in hopes of circumventing the Safe Third Country Agreement and seeking asylum in Canada.

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Some experts now suggest Another Trump presidency could similarly push a new wave of migrants into Canada, given his promise of mass expulsion of immigrants — both those undocumented and those in the United States legally.

Residents of Roxham Road. told The Gazette that illegal border crossings have not stopped, despite a 2023 Canada-US Agreement aimed at reducing level crossings.

“We see (migrants) a lot,” said Patrick Chassim, who lives on Roxham Rd. He said he’s not sure the presidential election will affect the crossings, but he follows the news anyway from the United States.

Another Roxham Road. One resident, who asked that The Gazette not publish her name, said she heard RCMP officers say they expected more crossings if Trump won the election. Even today, “they cross every day, all day,” she said.

She said migrants often show up on her property. “If we wake up at night and there’s someone in the yard, I’m nervous,” she said. “It affects us.”

Lisa Primeau, who also lives on Roxham Road, said she is not worried about the outcome of Tuesday’s vote. She said migrants continue to cross the border, but don’t tend to bother her.

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The RCMP did not respond to The Gazette’s request for comment regarding the continued crossings.

In nearby Hemmingford, The Gazette met Lida, a dual Canadian-American citizen who said she cares so little about the election that she won’t vote. (She declined to share her last name.)

“I don’t see the difference” between Trump and Harris, she said, adding that she rarely participates in elections on either side of the border.

Kasy Bockus told The Gazette she “doesn’t really follow” the US elections, although she has said she would prefer a Harris presidency. She said she worries the price of materials like aluminum could rise if Trump were to follow through on his campaign promise and impose tariffs, making home improvement projects more expensive.

Melissa Reynolds, who lives in Venise-en-Québec, told The Gazette she believes “Trump is the only solution” to the problems facing the United States. She said she supported Hillary Clinton in 2016, but began favoring Trump over the past decade. Covid-19 pandemic when lockdown restrictions made border crossing into the United States more difficult.

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Reynolds, who opted not to get the COVID vaccine, said she crosses the border frequently but is less able to do so during the pandemic, in part because of her vaccination status.

She said she has a lot of family in the United States, most of whom disagree with her support for Trump. Still, Reynolds said she doesn’t expect the U.S. election to affect her personally.

“I don’t care,” Isabel told The Gazette in French outside a Lacolle grocery store, declining to give her last name.

Cyndi Béland said the same thing. She had “no” interest in the election, she said, although she did care about the passage of migrants. “It affects us,” Béland said, adding that she expects these measures to continue regardless of the election outcome.

Lukas Dunek, who lives in nearby Noyan, said he supports Harris for president and is following the election. Would the result affect him much? Dunek said he didn’t expect that.

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