New Poll Finds All-Time High Support for a Pathway to Citizenship for Undocumented

90% of all Americans and 87% of Republicans favor legalization over mass deportation

Today, CNN/ORC released a poll showing that 90% of all Americans — an all-time high — support establishing a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have been in this country for a number of years, hold a job, speak English, and are willing to pay any back taxes that they owe. The poll found strong overwhelming for a pathway to citizenship across the political spectrum showing that 87% of Republicans and 89% of Independents agree with this approach. The poll clearly indicates growing support for this approach, showing an increase in the percentage of Americans who believe in pursuing a pathway to citizenship up from a similar CNN poll from September 2016, which found that 88% of Americans held this view.

Additionally, the poll found that Americans strongly oppose efforts to deport all undocumented immigrants currently living in the country:

• 71% of all Americans oppose mass deportation, including 55% of Republicans and 71% of Independents – an increase from a September 2016 CNN poll that found 66% of Americans oppose mass deportation.

• Independents represented the majority of this opinion change, shifting from 66% opposed in Sept. to 71% who say they are opposed today.