Attitudes toward unauthorized immigrants and the specter of mass deportation by the Trump administration are complicated, according to recent surveys.
Recent polling by Pew Research Center finds majorities of Americans expressing concern about the number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. and favoring their expulsion, but with many supporting pathways enabling some to remain. And a subsequent survey released by the National Immigration Forum finds most conservative voters want only violent criminals to be expelled rather than wide segments of the undocumented population.
While full details have not been released, Trump and his team have promised sweeping deportation efforts with the U.S. military and law enforcement rounding up, detaining and ultimately expelling undocumented immigrants. Incoming “border czar” Tom Homan has vowed a resumption of the workplace raids common during Trump’s first term, and NBC News reported a plan allowing immigration agents to arrest unauthorized immigrants found in churches, schools and hospitals.
In research conducted ahead of the 2024 election, Pew said about 75% of Americans were worried to some extent about the number of migrants entering the nation illegally and believed the U.S. immigration system needs to be drastically overhauled. Nearly 90% of Trump supporters said they favored mass deportation as a solution, compared to 27% of Kamala Harris supporters who favored such and 72% who opposed Trump’s approach.
“Many Americans support both deportation and having a path to legal status.”
“At the same time, most (64%) also say undocumented immigrants should have a way to stay in the country legally if certain requirements are met,” Pew reported. “Many Americans support both deportation and having a path to legal status. Among those who support mass deportations, 43% also say undocumented immigrants should have a way to stay in the country legally.”
Voters most likely to support pathways to residency include majorities of Black, Hispanic and Asian adults, 18- to 29-year-olds, older Americans and voters who expressed support for Harris. But Pew also found significant shares of conservatives who approve of allowing immigrants to remain in the U.S. in some circumstances.
“More than a third of Trump supporters (37%) favor allowing undocumented immigrants to live and work in the U.S. if they are married to an American citizen, compared with 80% of Harris supporters who say the same.”
In its survey released Dec. 11, the National Immigration Forum and the Bullfinch Group found “significant majorities” of Trump voters who want his immigration policies to focus on threats to public safety and not on the “unlimited net” of mass deportation.
“An even higher percentage of Republicans, ideological conservatives and white evangelical Protestants want family unity and other core American values to ‘remain key priorities’ as border security and immigration enforcement ramp up,” their report notes.
Three-quarters of Republicans agreed with the statement, “In accordance with American values, family unity, respect for human dignity, and protection for the persecuted must remain key priorities as the government increases border security and immigration enforcement.” Only 18% disagreed and 7% were uncertain about the statement.
In addition, 60% of Republicans and 67% of all voters said the removal of violent criminals and those with final orders of deportation should be the focus of immigration enforcement instead of going after all immigrants without legal status, according to the survey.
“Even voting blocs that support tougher enforcement want the Trump administration to preserve American values and set enforcement priorities.”
“Even voting blocs that support tougher enforcement want the Trump administration to preserve American values and set enforcement priorities,” Forum President Jennie Murray said. “We urge the new administration to work with Congress on immigration solutions that boost our security, honor human dignity and preserve family unity.”
According to Pew, Americans for Harris and Trump were in closer agreement on border security in some areas than thought, with 96% of conservatives and 80% of liberals agreeing improvements are necessary. “Admitting more high-skilled immigrants is favored by 71% of Trump supporters and 87% of Harris supporters.”
But agreement on allowing undocumented immigrants to remain in the U.S. declined from 75% to 64% since 2020, Pew added. Conversely, the share who said those individuals should not stay increased from 24% to 35% in that span.
“Americans who say undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay under certain conditions express mixed support for several conditions we asked about,” the Pew report says. “Security background checks are by far the most popular requirement, while other requirements receive less support.”
More than half of respondents said unauthorized immigrants should be required to have jobs and 25% said they should be ordered to pay fines in order to stay. Among those in agreement with immigrants remaining with certain requirements, 60% said they should be allowed to apply for citizenship and 39% preferred eligibility to apply for permanent residence only.
Reasons given for opposing undocumented immigrants included not wanting to reward those who entered the country illegally (86%), a lack of fairness for immigrants with legal status (81%) and the diversion of resources from U.S. citizens (76%). An estimated 11 million unauthorized immigrants live in the U.S., Pew said.
A new study by Public Religion Research Institute uncovered a strong correlation between strong authoritarian views and support for using the U.S. military to place undocumented immigrants in internment camps pending their deportation.
“American voters who hold highly authoritarian views are six times as likely to agree with placing undocumented immigrants into such camps until they can be deported than American voters who largely reject authoritarianism (48% v. 8%),” PRRI reported.
Among all voters, 26% support using the military to detain immigrants compared to 46% of Republicans, 19% of independents and 8% of Democrats, PRRI said.
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