New Polls from the Immigration Hub, Wall Street Journal, and Navigator Research Demonstrate Support for Pragmatic – Not Cruel – Approach to Immigration Off of Anti-Immigrant Hate

23 JAN 2025

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Immigration Hub released a two-part study on how battleground 2024 voters largely opposed Donald Trump’s mass deportation policy, instead demonstrating support for a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and a balanced approach to fixing the nation’s immigration system. The study echoes recent findings from a January poll by the Wall Street Journal that found that “70% would protect longtime residents from removal if they don’t have criminal records.” A nationwide Navigator Research survey also found that a majority of registered voters (65%) support providing “legal status to undocumented immigrants who are working here and pass a background check” instead of mass deportation of “all illegal immigrants, starting with violent criminals.”

“This notion that there is this ‘grand’ American support for mass deportation and that Congress must enable Trump’s plans is so misguided and absurd,” stated Beatriz Lopez, Co-Executive Director of Catalyze/Citizens. “Over and over again, when Americans are given a choice between Trump’s policy and a sensible approach to immigration that includes a pathway to citizenship and smart border security, the American people choose the latter. What our study has made even clearer is that Democrats have failed to capitalize on the popularity of citizenship and pragmatism. Outspent and out-talked on the issue has a majority of Americans and immigrants wondering where Democrats stand on immigration and whether Trump is their foil. The question for Democrats shouldn’t be how far to the right they should move on the issue, but rather – when will they boldly articulate an alternative vision for our immigration system that meets Americans’ support for citizenship?

“While Trump and Stephen Miller release a flurry of executive orders that intend to reshape America in their image and create a new generation of second-class citizens, members of Congress are voting for bills, such as the Laken Riley Act, that fuel Trump’s agenda and go against the solutions that the American people truly demand. Every day, Congress faces a choice between two Americas. History has taught us that policies built on fear and division – from Japanese internment to segregation – ultimately land on the wrong side of American progress. The path forward is clear – when elected officials choose to stand for unity over division, for dignity over cruelty, they win not just in their districts or states, but on the moral high ground where America’s most courageous leaders have always found their strength.”

The Immigration Hub’s two-part study was conducted by BlueLabs Analytics, which administered two surveys with likely voters matched to the voter file in the seven presidential (AZ, GA, MI, NV, NC, PA, WI) and two senatorial battleground states (OH, MT). The first survey of 2,088 voters was conducted between September 6th and 16th and the second survey of 1,824 voters was conducted between October 20th and November 4th. 

Key findings, include:

• 57% of battleground voters supported a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who meet certain requirements, compared to 37% who favored mass deportation.
• Even among Trump supporters, 26% preferred a pathway to citizenship and 39% supported a balanced approach to addressing our immigration system.
• In the second wave of surveying battleground voters, 64% preferred a “balanced approach” combining border security with protections for Dreamers and pathway to citizenship, versus 31% of voters who preferred an enforcement-only approach. 
• 7 in ten voters recalled seeing some ad about immigration in the final weeks of the cycle. A slightly higher percentage of battleground voters in the Rustbelt (Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin) reported hearing or seeing some ad on immigration (71%), either positive or negative, compared to voters in the Sunbelt (Arizona, Georgia Nevada, North Carolina) (66%). 

Read the full findings here.

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