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New CNN Poll: 83% of Americans, Including 67% of Republicans, Want Dreamers to Stay in America

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Lynn Tramonte: “This Should Be a No-Brainer for Congress”

The newest CNN poll is the latest in a long line of recent polling that shows that Americans, including Republicans, overwhelmingly back efforts to keep Dreamers here in America.

  • By an 83-13% margin, Americans back a policy resolution for DACA recipientsand efforts to allow Dreamers to remain in America instead of facing potential deportation
  • Support for a resolution for Dreamers is overwhelming across partisan affiliation:Democrats support a 94-4% margin; Independents by a 83-14% margin; and Republicans by a 67-25% margin.

According to Lynn Tramonte, Deputy Director of America’s Voice:

This should be a no-brainer for Congress. Keeping Dreamers in America – their home and country they grew up in  – is overwhelmingly popular across the country and across the political spectrum. Why are so many Republicans in Congress and the White House treating this like it’s a controversial issue? It’s not. The American people want their elected representatives to formally recognize Dreamers as the Americans they already are.  Congress has a real opportunity to come together on a bipartisan basis and advance a solution that is actually popular among Americans of all political stripes.  They just need the political will to actually do it.

Among other recent polls that demonstrate broad and deep support for efforts to keep Dreamers in America include:

  • NBC News/WSJ (December poll) By a 62-19% margin, Americans support Congress taking action so Dreamers can stay legally in America to attend college or work vs. the option of Congress taking no action and having Dreamers potentially face deportation (an additional 19% did not express a strong opinion either way). Of note, public support for Dreamers is growing – the NBC News/WSJ poll asked the same question in September and found 53-23% support in favor of Congress taking action.
  • Quinnipiac poll (Dec. 2017): By an 84-12% margin, Americans say that Dreamers should be allowed to stay in America and gain legal status – including 77% who support a path to citizenship (an additional 7% support legalization short of citizenship, while 12% say Dreamers should be required to leave the country). By partisan affiliation, at least 70% of every partisan subgroup backs legal status for Dreamers: Democrats at 95% (91% citizenship, 4% legal status, 4% deportation); Independents at 88% (81% citizenship, 7% legal status, 9% deportation); and Republicans at 70% (57% citizenship, 13% legal status, 25% deportation).
  • Marist poll (Dec. 2017): By an 81-15% margin, Americans support allowing Dreamers to stay in the U.S. and gain legal residency, with 58% of Americans backing citizenship, another 23% backing legal status short of citizenship, and just 15% supporting deporting Dreamers. By party affiliation, at least two-thirds of every subgroup backs legal status: Democrats at 92% (74% citizenship, 18% legal status, 5% deportation); Independents at 82% (57% citizenship, 25% legal status, 14% deportation); and Republicans at 67% (40% citizenship, 27% legal status; 29% deportation).
  • PRRI (Public Religion Research Institute) 2017 American Values Survey poll(Dec. 2017): By a 72-25% margin, Americans favor allowing “illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children to gain legal resident status if they join the military or go to college.” As PRRI explains, “Support for this policy has increased substantially from 57% in 2011.” 81% of Democrats and 63% of Republicans are supportive of Dreamers in the 2017 version of the survey.
  • CBS News poll (Dec. 2017): 84% of the public, including 93% of Democrats, 82% of Independents, and 74% of Republicans, support efforts to keep Dreamers here in America. The question asked, “do you favor or oppose allowing young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children to remain in the country if they meet certain requirements such as going to school or joining the military, and not having a criminal record?”
  • Public Policy Polling of 25 Republican-held “swing” House districts (Dec. 2017):By a 68-22% margin, voters in these battleground Republican-held congressional districts back the Dream Act. The question asked, “legislation known as the Dream Act that would allow young immigrants who were brought to the U.S. unlawfully as children to remain in the country, as long as they meet certain requirements such as going to school or joining the military, and not having a criminal record?”
  • Politico/Morning Consult poll (Nov 2017): A combined 71% of the public supports protecting Dreamers, while only 15% are opposed to such congressional action. When asked, how important of a priority should it be for Congress to pass “a bill that grants young people who were brought to the United States illegally when they were children, often with their parents, protection from deportation?”: “A top priority” was the plurality choice of the public (29%), while “Important but lower priority” (27%) and “Not too important” (15%) were the other supportive responses (totaling up to 71%). Meanwhile, only 15% said legislation protecting Dreamers “Should Not be done” (15%), while an additional 15% said “Don’t know/no opinion” (15%).
  • AP/NORC poll (Oct 2017): When asked, “Do you favor, oppose, or neither favor nor oppose providing a way for immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children to stay legally?” 60% of Americans back legalization, 22% oppose legalization, and 19% are either undecided or neither favor nor oppose. Each of Democrats (81-10%), Independents (45-22%), and Republicans (42-37%) favor the legalization option
  • Fox News poll (Sept 2017): By an 86-12% margin, Americans favor “granting work permits” to “illegal immigrants under the age of 30 brought here as children, provided they pass a background check.” By a 79-19% margin, Americans favor granting U.S. citizenship to this population. 63% of Trump voters back citizenship for Dreamers. Additionally, 62% say it is “extremely” or “very important” Congress pass an immigration law that will address the Dreamers – a higher percentage than “passing new health care” (58%) or tax reform (52%).
  • Quinnipiac University poll (Sept. 2017): 88% of Americans, and 79% of Republicans, support efforts to allow Dreamers to stay in this country and eventually apply for either citizenship or legal status short of citizenship. This includes 82% of Americans, including 69% of Republicans, who back citizenship for Dreamers. Only 10% of Americans and 18% of Republicans support removing Dreamers from the country.
  • CBS News poll (Sept. 2017): By an 87-10% margin, Americans back efforts to allow Dreamers to stay in the U.S., including by a 79-16% margin among Republicans
  • Washington Post/ABC News poll (Sept 2017): 86% of Americans, including 75% of Republicans, back an approach allowing Dreamers to stay in the U.S.
  • CNN poll (Sept. 2017): By an 82-14% margin overall, and a 74-21% margin among Republicans, Americans back an approach allowing Dreamers to stay in the U.S. and ensure that they are not exposed to deportation.
  • Harvard-Harris poll (Sept. 2017): 77% of Americans, including 66% of Republicans, back citizenship for Dreamers.
  • Politico/Morning Consult poll (Sept. 2017): 73% of Americans, including 70% of Republicans, support either citizenship or legalization for Dreamers.
  • Latino Decisions poll (Sept. 2017): Latino voters nationwide want Congress to pass the Dream Act with a path to citizenship by a 91-9% margin, including 83-17% among Latino Republicans.