25 JUNE 2021
New Battleground Poll on Immigration: Democrats Hold ‘Trust Advantage’ Over Republicans on Citizenship Bills, Need to Go on Offense
Popularity of citizenship proposals creates a clear opportunity for the Democratic Party to go on offense on immigration with a solutions-oriented approach
Listen to today's press call on the poll numbers here.
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, FWD.us, Immigration Hub and America’s Voice released the results of a new battleground state poll conducted by leading Democratic pollsters - Global Strategy Group, Hart Research and BSP Research - on immigration. The survey of battleground voters, including Latino voters, finds that the Democratic Party has a significant trust advantage over Republicans on immigration, namely delivering on the hugely popular pathway to citizenship bills, creating a clear opportunity for Democrats to go on offense on immigration. The polling finds that Americans want action on citizenship legislation because immigration is a consensus issue, not a divisive one. In fact, Democrats do not have to run away from the border debate and should aggressively push their solutions to the forefront against Republican attacks on the border.
As Vice President Harris visits El Paso today, the survey reveals that voters in battleground states strongly support specific solutions on the border. Despite efforts to distract the public with narratives about a “border crisis” and “invasion,” voters strongly support efforts to create a humane, orderly and safe immigration system at the border.
Top Takeaways:
1. Pathway to citizenship proposals remain incredibly popular as there is a large and stable consensus for reform. Pathway to citizenship proposals remain supported by a strong majority of voters, including pathways to citizenship for Dreamers (71% support/22% oppose), farmworkers (71%/21%), and for those with Temporary Protected Status (68% support/22% oppose). Notably, there is minimal opposition to all of these proposals (for example, just 12% strongly oppose a pathway to citizenship for farmworkers). This provides Democrats a clear opportunity to go on offense on immigration. Democrats should push these debates to the fore as aggressively as possible and not let the immigration conversation be defined exclusively by the border.
73% of voters say their own United States Senator should vote for these citizenship proposals, while only 27% say their Senator should vote against them.
2. While it is important to bring citizenship to the forefront, Democrats do not have to run away from the border debate. Efforts supported by Democrats to build a fair, orderly, and humane system at the border are very popular. Voters will respond positively if President Biden executes on his plan to do so, and communicates on it forcefully. If Democrats do not do so, voters will continue to only hear the Republican side of the story.
3. While President Biden may have low approval ratings on immigration, voters are not embracing the Republicans on this issue. Republicans do not have an advantage on immigration, and in fact it is Biden and the Democrats who have a slight advantage on who is more trusted on the issue.
See key poll details.
Among the findings, however, there is a clear warning for both parties in the lead up to the 2022 elections. Voters are ready to credit Democrats for passing proposals to shield Dreamers, farmworkers and TPS holders from deportation, but both Republicans and Democrats will share in the blame for an unsuccessful effort at reform. Half of voters surveyed said they are less likely to vote for a Senator who blocks citizenship proposals, while only 29% say they would be more likely to vote for a Senator who blocks these bills.
"Vice President Harris has tackled her portfolio with vigor and from multiple angles - and this visit is a good example of how the administration and Democrats can tell their side of the story on immigration," said Sergio Gonzales, Executive Director of the Immigration Hub. "The barrage of Republican bad faith, politically-motivated attacks are attempts to misinform and distract voters from their failure to address a system they completely broke under the previous administration. As our polling shows, people want solutions and major changes. And, at the center of this must be the fight for citizenship, a policy with incredible bipartisan support and an advantage for Democrats to deliver on a promise that will galvanize critical blocs of voters, including Latinos. This is the year to go on offense and show voters that Democrats stand on and deliver solutions."
“Our recent polling across Senate battleground states continues to show large and durable support for pathway to citizenship legislation, providing Democrats an opportunity to go on offense on immigration around a popular issue where they are more trusted than Republicans,” said Nick Gourevitch, Partner and Managing Director at Global Strategy Group. “Further, our polling shows that contrary to conventional wisdom, Republicans are not winning on this issue because what voters want is solutions to fix what they see as a broken immigration system. As such, voters continue to reject the Republicans’ inhumane and anti-immigrant record, and support Democratic solutions to build a fair, orderly, and humane system.”
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The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.