Seventy-one percent of likely voters—including 64 percent of Republicans—in the most competitive congressional districts in the United States consider support for comprehensive immigration reform an important factor in how they cast their vote in November, a recent Politico poll found. The survey released on Monday polled 867 likely voters in both English and Spanish and had a margin of error of plus/minus 4.1 percentage points.
According to the results, support for an immigration overhaul crossed party lines, with 78 percent of Democrats and 71 percent of independents calling it an important factor in deciding who to vote for. The same is true for 85 percent of Hispanic voters, 74 percent of white voters and 58 percent of African-American voters. Only 26 percent of those polled said that immigration would not influence their vote, and just 12 percent opposed comprehensive reform.
The poll comes less than a week after President Barack Obama set a timeline for action on reform during a meeting with law enforcement officials last Tuesday. While the Senate passed a comprehensive bill last June, similar legislation has been stalled in the House of Representatives. Meanwhile, Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson is in the midst of conducting a review of the administration’s immigration enforcement policies, specifically the controversial Secure Communities program.
