WASHINGTON — Donald Trump pledged on Oct 13 to hire an extra 10,000 border patrol agents if he is reelected as president, as he intensifies his attacks on Democrat candidate Kamala Harris on the issue of immigration.

The Republican presidential candidate said he would meet the goal by asking the US Congress to fund a 10 per cent pay rise for border patrol agents and a US$10,000 (S$13,000) retention and signing bonus, at a rally in the border state of Arizona, an election battleground.

Flanked on stage by leaders of the Border Patrol union, who have endorsed Trump, the former president said: "This will ensure that we can hire and keep the Border Patrol agents that we need."

Trump is locked in a close race with Democratic Vice-President Harris ahead of the Nov 5 election. Illegal immigration is a top voter concern, and Trump is seen by a majority of voters as the person best able to address it, opinion polls show.

Trump helped kill a bipartisan border security Bill earlier in 2024 that would have funded the hiring of 1,500 extra customs and border patrol agents, and an additional 1,600 asylum officers.

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