--- title: "5 facts about Trump supporters’ views of immigration" description: "Immigration policy has been a focal point of Donald Trump’s campaign since he first announced he was running for president. Here's a look at where his supporters stand on the issue." date: "2016-08-25" authors: - name: "Carroll Doherty" job_title: "Former Director, Political Research" link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/carroll-doherty/" url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2016/08/25/5-facts-about-trump-supporters-views-of-immigration/" categories: - "Donald Trump" - "Immigration Attitudes" - "Issue Priorities" - "Leaders" - "Politics & Policy" - "Unauthorized Immigration" --- # 5 facts about Trump supporters’ views of immigration [![The most populous contested counties](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/06/FT_16.06.30_contestedCounties_table.png?w=300)](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/06/FT_16.06.30_contestedCounties_table.png) [![(Photo by Angelo Merendino/Getty Images)](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2016/08/FT_16.08.25_TrumpImmigration-1.jpeg)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2016/08/25/5-facts-about-trump-supporters-views-of-immigration/ft_16-08-25_trumpimmigration-2/) *(Photo by Angelo Merendino/Getty Images)* Immigration policy has been a focal point of Donald Trump’s campaign since he announced he was running for president 14 months ago. Today, amid signs he may be preparing to [modify some of his hard-line positions](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-softening-on-immigration-many-of-his-supporters-dont-seem-to-mind/2016/08/24/668f91e2-6a0c-11e6-ba32-5a4bf5aad4fa_story.html) on illegal immigration, here is a review of where Trump supporters stand on the issue: [![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/08/FT_16.08.25_immigrationTrump.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2016/08/25/5-facts-about-trump-supporters-views-of-immigration/ft_16-08-25_immigrationtrump/) **Most Trump supporters view immigration as a “very big problem” in the U.S.** [In a survey released last week](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2016/08/18/clinton-trump-supporters-have-starkly-different-views-of-a-changing-nation/), 66% of registered voters who support Trump in the general election call immigration a “very big problem” in the country. Just 17% of Hillary Clinton backers say the same. Terrorism is the only other issue, among seven included, that is viewed by about as many Trump supporters as a major problem (65%). **Trump's proposed border wall gets overwhelming support from his backers. **Perhaps no Trump proposal has resonated more strongly with his supporters than his plan to build a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico. Fully 79% of Trump supporters favor building a wall along the entire U.S.-Mexico border; just 18% are opposed. Among Clinton supporters, 88% oppose a border wall, compared with 10% who favor it. **Trump supporters have mixed views of undocumented immigrants. **Just 35% of Trump supporters say undocumented immigrants take jobs U.S. citizens would like to have, and a third say that they are less hard-working and honest than citizens. However, a greater share of Trump supporters (50%) think undocumented immigrants in the U.S. “are more likely than American citizens to commit serious crimes”; 43% say they are not. And among voters who support Trump strongly, 59% associate unauthorized immigrants with serious criminal behavior. Fewer (42%) of those who support him less strongly say the same. Pro-Clinton voters are far less likely than Trump supporters to express negative views of unauthorized immigrants, and there are only slight differences based on strength of support. [![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/08/FT_16.08.25_immigrationDeport.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2016/08/25/5-facts-about-trump-supporters-views-of-immigration/ft_16-08-25_immigrationdeport/) **During the Republican primaries, most Trump supporters did not favor a national effort to deport all those in the U.S. illegally. **[In March](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2016/03/31/2-views-on-immigration-diversity-social-issues/), Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters who backed Trump for the GOP nomination were split over whether undocumented immigrants should be allowed to stay in the country legally: 52% were opposed to unauthorized immigrants staying in the U.S. legally, while 47% said they should be allowed to stay if they met certain requirements. At the same time, Trump supporters were less supportive of a path to legal status than were GOP voters who supported other candidates – and far less supportive than Democrats who supported either Clinton or Bernie Sanders for their party’s nomination. Most Trump supporters who opposed a path to legal status for those in the U.S. illegally supported a national law enforcement effort to deport all unauthorized immigrants. But that constituted fewer than half (42%) of GOP voters who supported Trump for the nomination. **Today, voters who back a Trump presidency are divided on priorities for U.S. immigration policy. **Nearly half (48%) of Trump supporters say the priority for policy to deal with illegal immigration should be stronger law enforcement and better border security. Just 10% say the priority should be creating a way for undocumented immigrants to become citizens if they meet certain requirements. But about four-in-ten (41%) say both of these approaches should be given equal priority. When Trump voters who give equal priority to both are asked to choose just one, a majority overall comes down on the side of stronger law enforcement and better border security: 78% say this should be the priority, compared with just 19% who prioritize a path to citizenship for those in the U.S. illegally. Among Clinton supporters, opinions are nearly reversed: 80% say a path to citizenship should be the priority, while 19% prioritize tougher law enforcement and better border security.