New Poll Says Majority of Americans Think Immigration ‘Jeopardizes the United States’

By Kenrya Rankin Mar 09, 2016

A new poll says that when it comes to immigration, the majority of Americans are not fans.

Bloomberg Businessweek reports that a poll from market researcher NPD Group and consulting firm A.T. Kearney found that 61 percent of 2,590 respondents agree that “continued immigration into the country jeopardizes the United States.”

The sentiment cut across all age groups, but was strongest among baby boomers (65 percent) and lowest for millennials (55 percent). When the data was parsed for education, 65 percent of those with either a high school education or some college agreed. And 66 percent of Southerners stood by the statement, with other regions reporting lower numbers.

In an interview with Bloomberg, Paul Laudicina of A.T. Keraney said that stats might be a symptom of the current political climate. “Given what’s going on in the national discourse and the desperate state of national politics…it makes people vulnerable to jingoistic sloganeering.”

The poll results differ sharply from those conducted in 2015. An October Pew Research Center study found that 53 percent of those surveyed felt immigration actually strengthened the country. And a June poll from Gallup revealed that only 34 percent of respondents were in favor of decreasing immigration.