Stunning New Poll Shows Support for Trump Immigration Crackdown Has Cratered — Especially Among Republicans
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
A new Gallup poll showed a sharp reversal in support for President Donald Trump’s immigration policies after several months of critical news coverage of ICE raids, controversial detention centers, and other crackdown efforts — and the big swing in opinion is largely being driven by Republicans.
The poll was conducted from June 2 through 26 of 1,402 U.S. adults, and among the key findings highlighted by Gallup were a “record-high” number of Americans (79%) who “consider immigration good for the country,” a 25-point drop in Americans who want immigration decreased, and notably diminished support for mass deportations, building a border wall, and increasing the number of Border Patrol agents.
According to Gallup’s previous polls, support for reducing immigration hit 55% in 2024 (the highest peak this century since the months in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks) but has now “dropped by nearly half to 30%.”
Thirty-eight percent want immigration to be maintained at its current level and 26% want it increased.
Republicans are the only partisan category “still showing at least plurality support for reducing immigration,” reported Gallup, but the drop in support for reducing immigration was the largest in this group — down a staggering 40 points in just a year, from 88% to 48%.
Independent support for reducing immigration dropped from 51% to 30%, a 21-point drop, and among Democrats, it fell from 28% to 16%, a 12-point drop.
Gallup also found “record-high 79%” of Americans calling immigration a good thing for the country (up from 64% last year) and a “record-low 17%” saying they see it as a bad thing.
This “represents a reversal of the downward trend seen in this view from 2021 to 2024,” reported Gallup, and “is largely owed to a sharp increase among Republicans and, to a lesser extent, independents,” with both groups’ opinions having “essentially rebounded to 2020 levels after souring in the intervening years.”
Gallup’s poll also revealed an upward trend in support for allowing immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children to become citizens and for allowing illegal immigrants who meet certain requirements a path to citizenship in general.
On the flip side, support for “significantly expanding” construction of border walls and deporting “all” illegal immigrants dropped, 8% and 9% respectively. The biggest change was a 17-point drop in support for “hiring significantly more Border Patrol agents.”
