Most illegal immigrants say they would still move to U.S., poll shows

A majority of illegal immigrants, despite souring attitudes amid President Trump’s enforcement surge, would still move to the U.S., according to a major new survey.

The KFF/New York Times poll said all immigrants — here legally and illegally — are increasingly worried over possible deportation for themselves or relatives. They also have a growing fear that America’s legal system won’t deliver fair treatment.

But the poll also found immigrants strongly support Mr. Trump’s border security efforts, with 60% saying they back what he’s done there.

Even a surprisingly strong 42% support his effort to deport illegal immigrants.

Overall, 70% of immigrants said they would still move to America. That includes a striking 56% of migrants who said they would do it the same way if they were to go back in time and face the choice again.

KFF conducted the poll to test immigrants’ attitudes, feelings of security and views on current political issues.

KFF said its poll found “deepening anxiety” across all immigration statuses.

“The survey paints a portrait of families under strain — where fear of detention and economic instability are negatively impacting immigrants’ health and reshaping immigrant families’ daily lives and views of U.S. political parties,” KFF said.

That includes 22% of immigrants who say they personally know someone who’s been arrested or deported under Mr. Trump.

Also, 41% fear they or a family member could be snared. That’s up from 26% in 2023, when KFF conducted a similar poll of immigrants.

Some 30% of immigrants report they or one of their relatives have changed their behavior, such as avoiding events, out of fear of being rounded up.

That included 5% who said they personally avoided taking a child to school, 7% who dodged medical care and 5% who skipped work. Hispanic immigrants were likelier than other demographics to report avoidance.

KFF said that was likely due to stiffer enforcement under Mr. Trump.

When asked if they thought enforcement has gotten too tough, 41% of immigrants said so. That’s up from 19% who thought it was too tough in 2023 under President Biden.

That shift is unsurprising, given the different postures of the two administrations. Under Mr. Biden, illegal immigrants inside the U.S. had almost zero risk of being arrested, particularly if they had no felony convictions.

Mr. Trump has removed restrictions on arrests and, while still focusing on criminals, has let officers arrest and deport anyone they encounter in the country without permission.

A strong 78% of immigrants said the U.S. has treated them and their family fairly.

But they weren’t as optimistic about the future, with 60% saying they used to think the U.S. was a great place for immigrants, but no longer.

Politically, the poll showed continued improvement for Republicans among immigrants, with support for the GOP rising from 20% in 2023 to 27% now. Democrats, meanwhile, have stagnated at 47% support, up just a single percentage point versus 2023.

About half of the immigrants surveyed said they were better off under Mr. Biden, while 16% said it’s better under Mr. Trump and 34% said it made no difference which man was on top.

The survey included 1,805 respondents. The pollsters concluded that 59% were naturalized citizens, 31% were here with some firm legal status, and the remaining 10% were “likely undocumented.”

The survey was 51% women, 47% men and 2% who described themselves “in some other way.”

Some 44% of respondents said they were Hispanic or Latino, 9% were Black, 28% were Asian, 18% were White European and the rest were spread among Middle Easterners, Pacific Islanders or other designations.