Image: A group of illegal border crossers from Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala arrested on private ranch in Maverick County, Texas. Image Credit: Texas Department of Public Safety
By Bethany Blankley [The Center Square contributor] –
A majority of registered voters, 75%, oppose noncitizens voting in U.S. elections and favor policies making it harder for them to vote, according to new polls released by Napolitan News Service.
A majority polled also blamed Vice President Kamala Harris for the border crisis, recognizing her as President Joe Biden’s designated border czar.
In one poll, registered voters not only overwhelmingly oppose noncitizens voting in federal elections but an even larger majority, 87%, support requiring voters to show a photo ID to vote. Only 9% oppose the photo ID requirement; 3% say they aren’t sure.
A smaller majority, 54%, said they believe it is likely that a large number of illegal immigrants “will be allowed to vote in this year’s election” despite federal law prohibiting it. Thirty-six percent said they don’t think noncitizens will be voting in the November elections; 10% said they were unsure.
In a separate poll, 54% agreed that Harris “was given responsibility for handling the situation at the southern border.”
Nineteen percent said she wasn’t, despite Biden holding a press conference in March 2021 stating she was; 26% said they weren’t sure.
A plurality polled, 47%, said illegal immigration will only increase if Harris is elected president, compared to 20% who said it will go down, 20% who said it would stay the same, and 12% who said they were unsure.
By contrast, 60% said if former President Donald Trump were reelected, illegal border crossings would go down. Only 13% said it would go up; 15% that it would stay the same and 11% said they were unsure.
The findings were released three months ahead of the November election and as the number of illegal border crossers since Biden-Harris took office surpassed 12.5 million in July, the largest number in U.S. history during a single administration’s term. This includes two million who evaded capture, according to data published by The Center Square that the federal government doesn’t publicize. Law enforcement officials have expressed concerns about the unknown security threats they pose, also stating there is no way to know how many are illegally in the country.
Numerous polls, including The Center Square Voter’s Voice Polls, show that registered voters want U.S. troops sent to the southern border, want the border to be secure, disapprove of Harris as border czar, argue the border crisis worsened under her and support Texas’ border security efforts.
The findings also come after House Republicans passed the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, filed by U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, to ensure that non-citizens aren’t registered to vote in federal elections. The bill was filed after several local Democratic-run jurisdictions announced efforts to register noncitizens to vote, and some, like the District of Columbia, passed measures to allow noncitizens to vote in local elections, The Center Square reported. House Democrats were encouraged to vote against it, and did. Only five Democrats voted with Republicans to pass it.
A coalition of 23 attorneys general have called on the Democratic-controlled Senate to pass it, but it has gone nowhere.
Another coalition of 24 attorneys general have called on the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on major cases to ensure noncitizens are prohibited from voting in U.S. elections.
Their calls have been made as many states continue to remove thousands of noncitizens from their voter rolls, The Center Square has reported.
About the Author: Bethany Blankley is a writer at the Center Square, Patheos/Hedgerow, political analyst and former press secretary at Capitol Hill / NY / WDC. Follow Bethany on Twitter@BethanyBlankley.
