According to a recent study conducted by the Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston, opinions on immigration and border security policies are sharply divided among Texans, with age and political affiliation having a significant impact.
According to a January survey of 1,200 adults in Texas, 64% of participants are in favor of giving undocumented individuals a route to legal status in the US if they fulfill specific conditions. However, according to the survey, 36% of respondents think that those without legal status shouldn’t be let to remain in the country.
Democrats were substantially more in favor of a legal approach (88%) than Republicans (44%).
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The poll indicates that a majority of Texans support stricter immigration enforcement policies. According to the survey, 87% of respondents favor deporting more persons with criminal records and illegal status in the United States, while 72% favor deporting those whose asylum requests have been rejected. Furthermore, 60% of respondents supported mass deportations of the majority of those without legal status, and 67% support building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Rice University political scientist Mark Jones talked about the survey on Friday’s Houston Matters. Play the following segment:
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Restrictions are also strongly preferred in opinions on asylum policies. In order to expedite the resolution of asylum cases, 79% of respondents prefer hiring more immigration judges, and nearly three-quarters of respondents support restricting the number of asylum claimants.
There is strong support for some categories of persons who are living in the United States illegally, even while there is widespread support for tougher immigration enforcement. According to the survey, 73% of Texans think that immigrants who were brought to the country as children and who have received Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) should be permitted to remain and work lawfully. Furthermore, 69% of respondents prefer increasing the number of legal immigration possibilities overall, and 72% support admitting more highly educated immigrants.
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According to Mark Jones, a political science fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, Dreamers are the group of undocumented immigrants that most Texans believe has the greatest right to remain in the country, while almost all Texans believe that deporting immigrants with criminal convictions should be accelerated.
Views on immigration are also influenced by demographic variations. According to the survey, compared to white Texans (55%), Black and Latino Texans (75% and 71%, respectively) are more likely to favor a legal road for those without legal status. Compared to older Texans, younger generations are more in favor of legal immigration paths, especially 82% of Gen Z and 72% of Millennials.
See the complete survey below:
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