Demographic Divides on Immigration and Diversity

As the 2024 election approaches, immigration is one of the top issues for Americans. The public is starkly divided on immigration policy along partisan lines, as past Council research has shown. But the opinions of the American public on immigration also vary significantly by ethnic and racial background. To better understand how different groups in the United States think about immigration, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and New America have partnered to conduct novel research on the views of various racial and ethnic communities in the United States as part of the 2023 Chicago Council Survey.

Impact of Diversity

A majority of Americans (52%) say the increasing number of people of many different races, nationalities, and ethnic groups in the United States makes the country a better place to live in. A third (30%) say it makes no difference, and 17 percent say it makes the country a worse place to live. Among racial and ethnic groups, Asian Americans and Hispanics are the most likely to see a more diverse country as a better country: 61 percent say so, and roughly half of Black (50%) and White Americans (48%) say the same.

Differing Views on Legal Immigration

Immigration plays a significant role in the growing diversity of the United States. According to the Migration Policy Institute, as of 2020, approximately 44.9 million immigrants lived in the United States, making up about 13.7% of the total population. Over the years, this number has risen, indicating the continued influence of immigration on the diversity of the United States.

Across all racial groups, the prevalent view is that legal immigration to the United States should be kept at present levels (44% overall). A majority of Asian Americans (54%) and Black Americans (52%) agree, as do pluralities of Hispanic (40%) and White Americans (39%). Matching that lower level of support for maintaining legal immigration levels, White Americans (34%) are most likely to favor decreasing legal immigration to the United States, compared to smaller proportions of Hispanic (29%), Black (25%), and Asian Americans (19%). Roughly a quarter of most demographics favor increasing legal immigration.

Demographic Preferences on Incoming Immigrants

When it comes to taking in immigrants from specific countries, there are notable regional effects that show up in different racial and ethnic groups’ preferences. For example, Asian Americans are more likely to favor admitting immigrants from South Korea (80%), Japan (77%), and Taiwan (71%) than other Americans—but are no different when it comes to admitting immigrants from China or India. Hispanics have generally similar views to other Americans but are slightly more inclined to admit immigrants from Central America (66%). Black Americans are more inclined to admit Haitians (67%) and less inclined to admit immigrants from Ukraine (62%), Taiwan (60%), South Korea (60%), Japan (57%), China (44%), or Russia (37%).

Immigration Reform

One of the thorniest problems in American immigration policy continues to be how to resolve the status of millions of undocumented immigrants living and working in the United States. On questions of immigration reform, Hispanic (51%) and Black Americans (50%) are the most likely to support a direct route to citizenship for illegal immigrants currently working in the US. Asian Americans support a path to citizenship but are more likely to favor requiring a penalty and waiting period (30% without, 34% with conditions). Both Asian (28%) and White Americans (27%) are the most likely to favor requiring these immigrants to leave the country. 

In an alternate wording that does not specify that the immigrants in question have jobs, White Americans are far more likely to favor requiring them to leave the country (44%), and support for a direct route to citizenship drops across all groups—though majorities of all still support a path to citizenship of some sort. Hispanic Americans remain the most supportive, followed by Black Americans.

Conclusion

With the 2024 presidential election looming large, candidates across the ballot will be aiming to appeal to the public on key issues. Immigration will certainly be among them. Immigration is high on the list of concerns for voters according to Gallup polling, and roughly half of Americans in Council polling say US leaders are not paying enough attention to the issue.

As our polling shows, American attitudes toward immigration differ notably among the various racial and ethnic subgroups of Americans. White Americans are more likely to favor decreasing legal immigration, and more likely to favor deporting undocumented immigrants rather than providing them a path to legal status or citizenship. By contrast, other racial groups in the United States generally prefer to maintain current levels of legal immigration, and are more likely to favor a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. And just as immigration plays a critical role in the growing diversity of the United States, the growing diversity of the US electorate will play a critical role in future immigration policy. As they head to the polls this fall, voters may well prioritize candidates with similar views on border security, pathways to citizenship, and refugee resettlement when making their electoral choices.