AZ, NV, PA Latino Voters on Immigration and the Southern Border

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Poll reveals voter priorities for border management and how this is shaping voter sentiment  

WASHINGTON, DC – UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization, today released poll findings from Latino voters in Arizona, Pennsylvania and Nevada and their views on immigration and the situation at the southern border. The findings provide valuable insights into the perspectives and priorities of Latino voters in these critical states and how immigration may be shaping their vote. 

  • For a slide presentation of poll topline results for AZ, NV, PA, see here. 
  • For the Virtual States Briefing, see here.

Clarissa Martinez De Castro, Latino Vote Initiative Vice President, UnidosUS said, “Fair, firm and free of cruelty—that is the message from Hispanic voters on immigration and the situation at the southern border. For too long, some have tried to set up relief and enforcement as competing objectives, and the result has been the further unraveling of our immigration system. Latino voters understand these are intertwined threads, key to restore order to the border and to our immigration system. They want border policy that improves management and security, provides safety to people seeking refuge and advances legality for undocumented people deeply rooted in our country. As perhaps the single most impacted community by the deterioration of our immigration system, and a decisive electorate, candidates would be wise to heed their message.” 

Key Findings: 

The poll, conducted by Lake Research Partners and The Tarrance Group, reveals that while economic concerns such as inflation and the cost of living continue to be the highest priorities for Latino voters, immigration is rising. Where immigration is concerned, respondents in all three states had similar immigration, border and asylum policy priorities, especially when it came to providing protection for the long-residing undocumented, cracking down on drug and human smugglers and working with other countries to protect asylum seekers.    

Arizona: 

  • Immigration and the border rank significantly higher in Arizona, almost tying with inflation and the cost of living as top issues. 
  • On immigration overall, Arizona voters prioritized providing a path to citizenship to long-residing undocumented individuals (50%) and to Dreamers (45%) and increasing legal immigration (30%). 
  • Regarding the border specifically, Arizona voters prioritized cracking down on human traffickers and drug smugglers (84%), expanding funding for border security (51%) and providing a path to citizenship for the long-residing undocumented (49%). 
  • On asylum policies, the priorities are partnering with other countries to help asylum seekers find protection elsewhere (38%), allowing asylum seekers to apply for asylum in the U.S. from other countries (20%) and requiring asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while they wait for a hearing on their application (20%). 

Nevada: 

  • The economy, especially inflation and the cost of living, is the highest concern. 
  • On immigration overall, Nevada voters prioritized providing a path to citizenship to long-residing undocumented individuals (44%) and to Dreamers (36%) and cracking down on human smugglers (28%). 
  • Regarding the border specifically, Pennsylvanian voters prioritized cracking down on human traffickers and drug smugglers (73%), providing a path to citizenship for the long-residing undocumented (56%) and expanding funding for border security (45%). 
  • On asylum policies, the priorities are allowing asylum seekers to apply for asylum in the U.S. from other countries (40%), partnering with other countries to help asylum seekers find protection elsewhere (30%) and requiring asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while they wait for a hearing on their application (20%). 

 Pennsylvania: 

  • Immigration and the border are also major concerns, ranking just below economic issues. 
  • On immigration overall, Pennsylvania Latino voters prioritized providing a path to citizenship to long-residing undocumented individuals (48%) and Dreamers (35%) while cracking down on human smugglers (35%). 
  • Regarding the border specifically, Pennsylvania Latino voters prioritized cracking down on human traffickers and drug smugglers (81%), providing a path to citizenship for the long-residing undocumented (51%) and expanding funding for border security (41%). 
  • On asylum policies, the top priorities are partnering with other countries to help asylum seekers find protection elsewhere (43%), requiring asylum seekers to wait in Mexico while they wait for a hearing on their application (30%) and allowing asylum seekers to apply for asylum in the U.S. from other countries (29%). 

Cris Ramón, Senior Advisor on Immigration at UnidosUS stated, “These findings provide a roadmap for taking on our challenges at the U.S./Mexico border that reflects the values of Latino voters. Tackling pressing security issues, providing a pathway to relief for the long-residing undocumented, and working with other countries to address the reception of asylum seekers form the core of a pragmatic, principled and forward-thinking border policy.”  

David Mermin, Partner at Lake Research Partners said, “As in our national data, these poll findings in three critical swing states show the importance of economic issues to Latino/a voters, as well as a strong desire for action on immigration policy. Latinos in Arizona, Nevada and Pennsylvania want to see a path to citizenship for undocumented long-term residents and Dreamers, increased legal immigration through family and employment-based visas and border security. And they will be paying close attention to these issues when they vote in November.” 

 Brian Nienaber, Vice President of The Tarrance Group also stated, “This survey finds that Hispanic GOP voters hold views similar to those of their GOP counterparts of other races on the issue of immigration, including a strong interest in Congressional action on immigration as well as support for more restrictive immigration policies like increased border security and higher levels of deportation.” 

About the Survey: 

  • Conducted by Lake Research Partners and The Tarrance Group. 
  • N=800 registered Latino voters, with oversamples of N=250 registered voters each in Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. 
  • Margin of error: +/-3.5% for the full sample; greater for subgroups. 
  • Field dates: May 13-22, 2024. 
  • Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish via live telephone and text-to-online methods. 
  • Data were weighted slightly by gender, age, education level, region, Hispanic background and partisanship score to reflect the demographic composition of registered Latino voters nationwide.