Americans' Support for Immigration Down, Still Strong

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans broadly continue to think immigration is a good thing for the U.S. (73%), though that share has slipped from a record high of 79% last year. Still, it remains above the 25-year trend average of 67%.

Gallup’s June 1-15 telephone poll finds that 21% of U.S. adults believe immigration is a bad thing for the country.

The recent decline in U.S. adults’ view of immigration as a good thing is largely driven by Republicans, whose positive view fell 14 percentage points to 50%, reversing some of the 25-point jump recorded the year before. Independents’ positive view of immigration also slipped this year and is down seven points to 73%, though it is still well above the 2024 reading of 66%.

The current 91% reading among Democrats ties last year’s as the highest for the group. Majorities of Democrats and independents have said immigration is a good thing each year since the question was first asked in 2001. By contrast, Republicans have been less likely to hold this view, with less than half doing so three times — in 2002, 2022 and 2024.

Americans See More Benefits Than Drawbacks of Immigration for the Economy

A separate June 1-15 Gallup Panel probability-based web survey asked Americans whether legal immigration has positive, negative or no effects on seven aspects of the U.S. economy. Majorities say legal immigration has a very or somewhat positive effect on four areas: filling gaps in the workforce left by a growing retired population (64%), supplying workers for low-wage jobs (60%), generating tax revenue for public programs (56%), and contributing to the availability of science and technology workers (52%).

The public is about evenly split between positive (35%) and negative (33%) effects on the use of education, healthcare and other public services, with 25% saying immigration has no effect. Americans are more likely to see negative than positive effects on job opportunities for U.S.-born workers (33% vs. 27%, respectively) and housing availability and costs (40% vs. 23%).

Democrats are more likely than Republicans and independents to say immigration has a positive effect on each of the seven aspects of the economy. Majorities of Democrats and independents think immigration positively affects workforce supply, tax revenue, and science and technology jobs, while Republicans reach majority-positive views only on workforce gaps left by a growing retired population (55%). All three groups are most skeptical about housing availability and costs and job opportunities for U.S.-born workers.

Americans Nearly Evenly Split on Preferred Level of Immigration

The June telephone poll also asked Americans whether immigration should be increased, decreased or kept at its present level, a question Gallup first asked in 1965 and has tracked at least annually since 1999. Currently, 35% of U.S. adults favor keeping immigration at its present level, 31% want it increased, and 29% want it decreased.

After a recent spike to 55% in 2024, the share wanting immigration decreased has fallen over the past two years, while the share wanting it increased has rebounded to near its highest point in Gallup’s trend.

Longer term, the percentage of Americans wanting immigration decreased peaked at 65% in 1993 and 1995, while the highest percentage preferring it be increased was 34%, recorded in 2020.

Partisans’ views are similar to last year, with a plurality of Democrats favoring an increase in immigration (47%) and Republicans favoring a decrease (48%, but far below the 88% trend high in 2024). A plurality of independents prefer that immigration be kept at its present level (37%).

Citizenship Pathways More Popular Than Enforcement Measures

Beyond general views on immigration, the telephone poll measured Americans’ support for five specific policy proposals. The highest levels of support are seen for two proposals related to citizenship, with slightly more in favor of allowing immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children the chance to become U.S. citizens if they meet certain requirements (81%) than doing the same for immigrants living in the U.S. illegally (75%). In each case, more Americans “strongly favor” the proposal than just “favor” it.

The public is about evenly divided between favoring (49%) and opposing (48%) hiring significantly more Border Patrol agents. Majorities of Americans oppose deporting all immigrants who are living in the U.S. illegally back to their home country (58%) and banning sanctuary cities by requiring local governments to cooperate with U.S. agencies trying to enforce federal immigration laws (54%). More Americans “strongly oppose” than just “oppose” these two proposals.

Views of both pathway-to-citizenship proposals and the Border Patrol and deportation proposals were measured in last year’s poll. Support for the deportation proposal is similar to 2025 but remains well below the 2024 reading, while support for the citizenship measures remains stable. Backing for hiring more Border Patrol agents has fallen another 10 points since last year, after rising to 76% in 2024. Gallup last asked about banning sanctuary cities in 2018, and opposition has grown eight points since then.

Looking only at the shares of partisans who strongly favor each proposal, majorities of Democrats but far fewer Republicans strongly favor pathways to citizenship for those who came to the U.S. illegally as children and for those living in the country illegally in general. There is a 51-point party gap on each of these measures.

At the same time, majorities of Republicans but very few Democrats strongly favor the other three proposals. There is a 58-point party gap on banning sanctuary cities and 47-point gaps on hiring more Border Patrol agents and deporting all undocumented immigrants. Independents’ support for each proposal falls between the two major party groups on each measure and is generally in line with the national average.

While only 23% of Republicans strongly favor a citizenship pathway for immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children, another 33% favor it, which brings the total to the majority level. Similarly, when independents’ “strongly favor” and “favor” percentages are combined, majorities support pathways to citizenship for undocumented immigrants in general (79%) and for those who arrived as children (86%).

The overall decline in support for more Border Patrol agents is due to seven-point drops in strong support among both Republicans and independents.

Bottom Line

Americans’ broadly positive views of immigration have generally been on the rise and remain near their record highs, even as they fluctuate slightly from year to year in response to the political environment. The current 73% of U.S. adults who think immigration is a good thing, while down from last year’s record high, is above average for the trend and well above the lows recorded in the early 2000s.

The sharpest swings in recent years have come from Republicans, whose views have moved dramatically since 2024 — likely reflecting declines in illegal immigration and changes in presidential administrations, along with shifting political messaging on the issue. That is, once their party took office and began pursuing aggressive enforcement, some Republicans may have felt the problem was being addressed and softened their position accordingly.

The enduring popularity of citizenship pathways, even among Republicans, alongside majority-level opposition to deportation and bans on sanctuary cities, suggests that public appetite for the most aggressive enforcement measures is currently limited.

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