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Description: BSG conducted 1000 interviews nationwide with likely voters between May 9 and 12, 2009 and 500 interviews each in Idaho’s 1st Congressional District, Alabama’s 2nd Congressional District, and California’s 3rd District (swing districts) between May 27 and June 1, 2009.
Findings:
- There is strong support for comprehensive immigration reform in conservative-leaning Congressional districts. Nearly two-thirds of respondents in these districts supported comprehensive immigration reform when asked generically (65% in ID-1, 65% in AL-2 and 67% in CA-3), while support climbed to nearly 90% after the details of comprehensive reform were explained (88% in ID-1, 87% in AL-2, and 83% in CA-3). Respondents were also more likely to support Congressional candidates who championed comprehensive reform rather than those who opposed it (85% in ID-1, 83% in AL-2, 79% in CA-3)
- Support for reform is holding despite economic concerns
- Voters see the benefit of reform to economy
- Voters believe that reform helps honest businesses
- Voters prefer requiring unauthorized immigrants to pay taxes rather than a mass deportation
- This is consistent with all previous polling, which shows that concern about tax dollars (not job loss) is key for most voters
- Comprehensive immigration reform is seen as being fair to both citizens/taxpayers and “illegal” immigrants
- Voters are looking for a solution to the problem, not a way to punish businesses or immigrants
