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SURGE IN U.S. CONCERN ABOUT IMMIGRATION HAS ABATED  
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Lydia Saad
July 11, 2025
Gallup
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_ Record-high 79% consider immigration good for the country and
support down for border wall and mass deportation. _

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans have grown markedly more positive
toward immigration over the past year, with the share wanting
immigration reduced dropping from 55% in 2024 to 30% today. At the
same time, a record-high 79% of U.S. adults say immigration is a good
thing for the country.

These shifts reverse a four-year trend of rising concern about
immigration that began in 2021 and reflect changes among all major
party groups.

With illegal border crossings down sharply this year, fewer Americans
than in June 2024 back hard-line border enforcement measures, while
more favor offering pathways to citizenship for undocumented
immigrants already in the U.S.

These findings are based on a June 2-26 Gallup poll of 1,402 U.S.
adults, including oversamples of Hispanic and Black Americans,
weighted to match national demographics.

The same poll finds many more Americans disapproving than approving of
President Donald Trump’s handling of immigration. Trump’s 21%
approval rating on the issue among Hispanic adults is below his 35%
rating nationally, with the deficit likely reflecting that group’s
low support for some of the administration’s signature immigration
policies.

Fewer Americans Want Immigration Decreased

After climbing to 55% in 2024, 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 less immigration started to mount. 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, 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%.

Republicans are the only group still showing at least plurality
support for reducing immigration. Independents are most likely to
favor maintaining current levels, while a plurality of Democrats favor
increasing it.

Record High Say Immigration Benefits Nation

When asked if immigration is generally a good thing or 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.

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.

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.

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.

More Citizenship, Less Enforcement

In addition to supporting increased or stable immigration levels, more
Americans now favor offering undocumented immigrants pathways to
citizenship, while fewer support stringent measures to deter or
reverse illegal immigration.

In terms of impeding illegal immigration at the source, 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.

Yet, 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. However, it should be noted that last year’s support for
deportation was uniquely high. Today’s level matches where it stood
in 2019 (at 37%) and is slightly higher than when first measured in
2016 (32%).

In terms of a new policy being debated this year, Americans give
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. 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%.

The declines in support for hiring more border agents and deporting
all undocumented immigrants are mainly due to less support from
independents and Democrats. Independents are also primarily
responsible for the slip in support for expanding the construction of
walls along the U.S.-Mexico border. Republicans’ support for each of
these measures remains high.

Meanwhile, the eight-point increase in support for giving immigrants
living in the U.S. illegally the chance to become U.S. citizens
reflects increased support from all party groups, with the biggest
gain among Republicans (up 13 points to 59%).

Majority Disapprove of Trump’s Handling of Immigration

Perhaps because of Americans’ opposition to immigration policies
that Trump has enacted to remove undocumented immigrants from the
U.S., their evaluation of his work on immigration is mostly negative.
Thirty-five percent approve of his handling of the issue, including
21% strongly approving, while 62% disapprove, including 45% strongly.

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%).

Hispanic Adults More Supportive of Citizenship, Less of Enforcement

Hispanic Americans’ views on immigration are particularly relevant
to these measures, given the strong focus of current immigration
policy on immigrants from parts of Latin America who have entered the
U.S. illegally at the southern border.

In terms of policy views, the greatest divergence between Hispanic
adults and U.S. adults overall is Hispanic adults’ 16-point lower
support for hiring more border agents (43%). Hispanic adults also
trail the general population in their support for deporting all
immigrants living in the U.S. illegally (by 15 points, at 23%). They
are 13 points _more_ likely to support allowing immigrants living in
the U.S. to become citizens — 91% favor this.

Additionally, at 21%, Hispanic Americans’ approval of Trump’s
handling of immigration is 14 points below the national average. With
respect to immigration levels, Hispanic adults are slightly more
likely than U.S. adults overall to say immigration should be decreased
(39% vs. 30%, respectively) as well as to consider immigration a bad
thing (25% vs. 17%), but the majority in both cases still express
pro-immigration views.

Bottom Line

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.

_Lydia Saad is the Director of U.S. Social Research at Gallup, where
she is responsible for maintaining Gallup’s long-term trends and
ongoing measurement of U.S. public opinion. _

* Immigration
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* public opinion
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* positivity
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