Survey Report
With immigration shaping up to be a major topic in both the final years of the Obama government and the 2016 presidential political campaign, most Americans ( 72 % ) proceed to say undocumented
immigrants presently living in the U.S. should be allowed to stay in the country legally, if certain requirements are met .
These views have fluctuated only modestly over the past two years. As in anterior surveys, a majority of those who favor granting legal condition for people in the U.S. illegally – 42 % of the public overall – say they should be able to apply for U.S. citizenship. About a quarter of the populace ( 26 % ) say they should alone be able to apply for permanent wave residency .
The survey by the Pew Research Center, conducted May 12-18 among 2,002 adults, finds less agreement when it comes to other opinions about immigrants and immigration .
About half ( 51 % ) say immigrants nowadays strengthen the nation because of their difficult work and talents, while 41 % say immigrants are a charge because they take jobs, caparison and health care. The share saying that immigrants strengthen the area has declined six share points since last year.
A majority of Republicans ( 56 % ) support a way to legal condition for undocumented immigrants in the U.S. At the like time, army for the liberation of rwanda more Republicans say immigrants are a load on the nation ( 63 % ) than say they strengthen the area ( 27 % ) .
Among Democrats and independents – majorities of whom besides support a path to legal status for people in the U.S. illegally – most say immigrants strengthen the state ( 62 % of Democrats, 57 % of independents ) .
overall, most Americans reject the theme that giving those who came to the U.S. illegally a path to legal status is in perfume “ rewarding ” them for badly demeanor. about six-in-ten ( 58 % ) say they do not think of a path to legal condition in these terms, while 36 % say it is “ like rewarding them for doing something wrong. ”
however, while most Republicans support allowing undocumented immigrants to stay in the U.S. legally if they meet certain requirements, a majority ( 58 % ) views a way to legal condition as a reward for doing something wrong. By contrast, just 23 % of Democrats and 33 % of independents say that giving undocumented immigrants a manner to remain in the U.S. legally is akin to rewarding them for doing something wrong .
The review finds that as debate over legal immigration besides heats up, the populace is split on the best approach for the country. slightly more say legal immigration into the United States should be decreased ( 31 % ) than increased ( 24 % ), while a 39 % plurality says legal immigration should be kept at its present level .
Among Republicans, 42 % think legal immigration into the U.S. should be decreased, compared with 34 % who think it should be kept at its salute level and just 21 % say it should be increased. Fewer Democrats ( 27 % ) and independents ( 28 % ) think legal immigration should be decreased, with pluralities of both groups saying it should be kept at confront levels .
There besides are socioeconomic differences in attitudes toward legal immigration : 35 % of those who have not completed college prefer swerve levels of legal immigration, compared with 25 % of college graduates and 18 % of those with post-graduate degrees. And across income levels, those with lower family incomes are more likely than those earning more to say legal immigration should be decreased .
Among the survey ’ s other findings :
Most Think Border Security Can Be Improved. About half ( 51 % ) say “ a draw ” can be done to reduce illegal immigration at U.S. borders, while another 29 % say reasonably more can be done. relatively few ( 17 % ) say not much or nothing can be done to improve molding security. These attitudes are little changed from 2013 .
Republicans Critical of Party on Illegal Immigration. just 34 % of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents say the GOP is doing a full job in representing their views on illegal immigration, while 59 % say it is not doing a commodity job. Democrats give their party more positive evaluations in dealing with this issue. About half ( 51 % ) of Democrats and democratic leaners say the party is doing a good job in representing their views on illegal immigration, while 43 % disagree. Democrats who support a way to legal condition are more likely than those who oppose it to say their party does a good job of representing their views on illegal immigration. Among Republicans, both supporters and opponents of legal status for immigrants here illegally think the GOP is not doing a adept speculate representing their views .
37% Approve of Obama’s Handling of Immigration. The May surveil finds that Obama gets some of his lowest topic approval ratings for his manage of the nation ’ s immigration policy. About four-in-ten ( 37 % ) approve of the way he is handling this policy, while 56 % disapprove. Whites disapprove of Obama ’ s performance on this issue by more than two-to-one ( 65 % to 29 % ). Hispanics are divided ( 48 % disapprove, 44 % approve ), while 66 % of blacks of approve of Obama ’ s treatment of immigration policy .
Most Support Path to Legal Status for Those in U.S. Illegally
Hispanics, younger Americans and Democrats are among the most supportive of both allowing undocumented immigrants to remain in the U.S., and having the opportunity to apply for U.S. citizenship .
fully 86 % of Hispanics say there should be a way for undocumented immigrants who are living in the U.S. to remain legally, if certain requirements are met : 54 % say they should be able to apply for citizenship while 30 % say they should be able to apply only for permanent wave residency .
Smaller majorities of blacks ( 72 % ) and whites ( 69 % ) favor allowing undocumented immigrants to stay in the U.S., and about four-in-ten in each group ( 38 % of blacks and 41 % of whites ) say they should be able to apply for citizenship .
About eight-in-ten ( 81 % ) of those younger than 30 say undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay legally, and a majority ( 53 % ) say that they should be allowed to apply for citizenship. Among Americans over 50, a smaller majority ( 64 % ) supports a path to legal status, while about a third ( 34 % ) say undocumented immigrants should not be allowed to stay.
There is a alike pattern in attitudes about whether providing legal status for those in the U.S. illegally amounts to a “ reinforce ” for wrongful actions .
Republicans ( 58 % ) are far more probable than Democrats ( 23 % ) or independents ( 33 % ) to say that allowing undocumented immigrants to remain in the U.S. is a honor for wrongdoing. notably, the share of Republicans who think of a way to legal condition as a reward for doing something incorrect has increased nine points ( from 49 % ) since May 2013. Over the same period, the percentage of Democrats who express this view has declined six points ( from 29 % to 23 % ). Independents ’ views are largely unchanged .
roughly four-in-ten ( 43 % ) adults 50 and older intend allowing undocumented immigrants to gain legal condition is a advantage for error, compared with 27 % of those under 30. And Hispanics ( 19 % ) are less likely than whites ( 41 % ) to view granting legal status as a reward for doing something improper .
Views on Legal Immigration to the U.S.
When it comes to legal immigration, a 39 % battalion supports keeping levels as they are presently. Of those who think levels of legal immigration into the U.S. should change, a reasonably greater share says legal immigration should be decreased ( 31 % ) than increased ( 24 % ) .
The share of Americans who favor less legal immigration has not changed much since 2013 ( 36 % ), but it has declined over the longer-term. A ten ago, 51 % said legal immigration should decrease, and in 2010, 41 % expressed this view, according to CBS News/New York Times surveys .
Twice as many Republicans think legal immigration should be decreased as increased ( 42 % vs. 21 % ) while about one-third ( 34 % ) want to keep it about the like. Among Democrats, a alike plowshare wants a decrease in legal immigration ( 27 % ) as an increase ( 24 % ), while a 43 % plurality says it should stay the like. Independents ’ views are exchangeable to those of Democrats .
There is a correlation between opinions about way to legal status for people in the U.S. illegally and views of legal immigration to the United States. Among the minority that opposes a path to legal condition ( 27 % ), 49 % favor decreasing legal immigration into the U.S. Among the much larger share that favors allowing undocumented immigrants to stay in the U.S. legally ( 72 % of the public ), only about half as many ( 25 % ) corroborate a reduction in legal immigration into the U.S .
Views of Immigrants’ Impact on the U.S.
By a 51 % -41 % margin, more say that immigrants today strengthen the nation through their hard oeuvre and talents than say they are a burden because they take jobs, caparison and health care. The share saying immigrants strengthen the nation has edged down from a high of 57 % reached last year .
Over the longer terminus, the libra of impression on this question has grown more positive. In Pew Research Center surveys conducted since 2012, reasonably more have said that immigrants strengthen the nation than burden it. Throughout the anterior ten, opinion was typically more divided, and in 2010, more view immigrants as a burden ( 50 % ) than a strength ( 39 % ) .
There are across-the-board partisan differences in views of immigrants ’ overall affect on the country today. Majorities of Democrats ( 62 % ) and independents ( 57 % ) say that immigrants strengthen the state because of their hard oeuvre and talents. By contrast, just 27 % of Republicans see immigrants, on counterweight, as making cocksure contributions to the country ; far more ( 63 % ) say that immigrants are a effect because they take jobs, housing and health care .
republican views on this question have turned more negative over the last year. The share of Republicans who say immigrants strengthen the country has declined from 42 % in March 2014 .
Majorities of younger adults take a incontrovertible horizon of immigrants ’ impingement on the country : 64 % of those 18-29 and 60 % of those 30-49 say that immigrants strengthen the country because of their hard work and talents. Among older adults, views are more minus : On counterweight, reasonably more of those 50-64 ( 54 % to 39 % ) and those 65 and older ( 50 % to 39 % ) say they view immigrants as a burden quite than a potency. Views among older adults have become more negative since the question was final asked in early 2014 .
Among whites, more say immigrants are a burden ( 49 % ) than a strength ( 43 % ). More blacks say immigrants strengthen the country ( 55 % ) than burden it ( 33 % ). Views of immigrants are specially positive among Hispanics : closely eight-in-ten ( 79 % ) think immigrants strengthen the nation through their hard work and talents. Hispanics have a bun in the oven outside of the U.S. see immigrants ’ contributions positively by an overpowering 92 % -6 % margin. Hispanics who were born in the U.S. besides view immigrants ’ shock on the country positively, but by a narrower allowance : 67 % say immigrants strengthen the nation, while 27 % say they are a burden .
Across education levels, college graduates are more probably than those with less education to say immigrants have benefited the country. overall, 63 % of college graduates evaluate the impact of immigrants on the country positively, compared with 50 % of those with some college experience and 44 % of those with no more than a high school diploma.
Partisans Rate Their Own Party’s Performance on Illegal Immigration
Democrats rate their party better than Republicans when it comes to representing their views on the issue of illegal immigration. About half ( 51 % ) of Democrats and democratic leaners say their party is doing a good job representing their views. just 34 % of Republicans and republican leaners say this about the GOP .
overall, 83 % of Democrats and democratic leaners support a path to legal condition for undocumented immigrants. Among this group, 55 % say the party is doing a good job representing their views on this issue ; 38 % say it is not. Democrats who oppose a path to legal status ( 16 % of all Democrats and Democratic leaners ) are more critical of their party : equitable 30 % say the party does a good job of reflecting their views, while 70 % say it does not .
On the republican side, both supporters and opponents of legal condition for undocumented immigrants think the GOP is not doing a good job representing their views. Republicans and Republican leaners who oppose legal condition are reasonably more negative about the party on this consequence ( 65 % bad caper vs. 30 % good job ) than those who support a nerve pathway to legal status ( 55 % bad vs. 36 % full ) .
