(Note: this is the first in a series of in-depth reports on US border issues)
A change in immigration enforcement tactics from prioritizing illegal aliens with criminal histories to arresting as many as possible, including those with no criminal histories, appears to be costing the Trump Administration broad public support for their polices.
Gallup’s latest polling now shows a shift in a four-year trend of rising concern about immigration that began in 2021, reflecting changes among all major party groups.
Gallup Poll Highlights:
30% of Americans want immigration decreased, down from 55% a year ago
Record-high 79% consider immigration good for the country
Support down for border wall, mass deportation
(These findings are based on a June 2-26, 2025, poll of 1,402 U.S. adults, including oversamples of Hispanic and Black Americans, weighted to match national demographics.)
This public opinion shift occurs as US Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) has stopped prioritizing the arrests of illegal aliens with criminal histories (“The Worst, First”) over those with no criminal record, to meet arrest quotas demanded by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem (see chart below).
So masked ICE Agents began arresting migrants without criminal records who had been cooperating with authorities by (among other tactics) voluntarily appearing for hearings, and arresting them at the courthouse when they complied.
Scenes like these appear to have contributed to a shift in public opinion.
After climbing to 55% in 2024, Gallup says the percentage of Americans who say immigration should be reduced has dropped by nearly half to 30%. Sentiment is thus back to the level measured in 2021, before the desire for reduced immigration began to gain momentum. Meanwhile, 38% now want immigration kept at its current level, and 26% say it should be increased.
With illegal immigration levels down dramatically and refugee programs suspended, Gallup finds the desire for less immigration has fallen among all party groups, but it is most pronounced among Republicans, down 40 percentage points over the past year to 48%. Among independents, this sentiment is down 21 points to 30%, and among Democrats, down 12 points to 16%.
When asked if immigration is generally a good thing or a bad thing for the country, a record-high 79% of U.S. adults call it a good thing; a record-low 17% see it as a bad thing.
Gallup notes this is consistent with the long-term pattern of more Americans viewing immigration as helpful than harmful to the country. But today’s endorsement is up from 64% last year and represents a reversal of the downward trend seen in this view from 2021 to 2024.
Gallup says the recent jump in perceptions of immigration being a good thing is largely owed to a sharp increase among Republicans and, to a lesser extent, independents. These groups’ views have essentially rebounded to 2020 levels after souring in the intervening years.
Gallup’s poll also finds that Democrats’ belief that immigration is beneficial to the country is also up slightly, to a record-high 91%. However, this is generally consistent with their highly positive perspective on immigration over the past decade, with at least 80% calling it a good thing each year since 2016.
In addition to supporting increased or stable immigration levels, the Gallup Poll finds more Americans now favor offering undocumented immigrants pathways to citizenship, while fewer support stringent measures to deter or reverse illegal immigration.
Support for increasing the number of Border Patrol agents has declined 17 points to 59%, from 76% a year ago. And backing for expanding the U.S.-Mexico border wall has dropped eight points to 45%. This likely reflects people perceiving these measures as less necessary given the sharp drop in illegal border crossings.
Support is also lower today for deporting all undocumented immigrants, with 38% now favoring this as the administration is attempting it, down from 47% last year when it was a Trump campaign promise.
In terms of a new policy being debated this year, Gallup finds lukewarm support to denying alleged gang members the ability to challenge deportation in court — half favor this being done, while 45% oppose it.
Meanwhile, support for allowing undocumented immigrants to become U.S. citizens has risen to 78%, up from 70% last year. Gallup notes this is also back to the level of support seen in 2019 (81%) while slightly lower than in 2016 (84%). Approval is higher still, albeit statistically unchanged, for offering individuals brought to the U.S. illegally as children a pathway to citizenship, with support holding above 80%.
President Trump’s handling of immigration during his second term has also largely begun to poll negatively. Thirty-five percent approve of his handling of the issue, including 21% strongly approving, while 62% disapprove, including 45% strongly.
Gallup notes that these views are sharply partisan: 85% of Republicans approve of Trump’s handling of immigration, compared with 28% of independents and just 2% of Democrats. Notably, 81% of Democrats strongly disapprove, while 59% of Republicans strongly approve. Independents are much more likely to strongly disapprove (45%) than to strongly approve (14%).
The bottom line, according to Gallup:
“The surge in illegal border crossings during the Biden administration triggered heightened public concern about immigration and increased demand for stricter enforcement. The Trump administration’s swift and visible response appears to have defused that concern, particularly among Republicans. As a result, Americans’ attitudes on immigration have largely returned to where they stood before the recent border surge, marked by broader appreciation for immigration, less desire to reduce it, and more support for pathways to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. At the same time, support for tougher border control and aggressive deportation policies has eased since last year, with these measures mostly losing their appeal among Democrats and independents.”
What are your thoughts on these poll results?
Share your opinion in the comments to this article.
(Also, do you want more in-depth reports like this one? I want to hear from you!)
Abrazos,
Jack Beavers
This is an outstanding posting. The decline of support for mass deportation is because the public is not educated on the subject. How many know that half the K-12 student population in the LA schools are children of illegals? This posting provides education with easily understood graphs. The GOP should publicize your graphs, plus graphs showing the costs of illegals and other negative consequences. We read about individual crimes but statistics are available that show national trends. Keep up the good work because you are doing a real a valuable service to the country.
They never called me to ask for my opinion. Deport them ALL. Don't care how long they've been here illegally. I want so many deported that I NEVER have to EVER press 1 for English on telephone calls. NO amnesty at all, ever. Come through the slow, years long process like my great grandfather went through. Learn English, and assimilate! No asylum either. I believe international laws state you must seek asylum ONLY from the country directly next to your country of origin.
That's how I feel, and I know there are hundreds of thousands that feel the same way. But no one is calling us for these opinion surveys.