Trump’s deportation agenda is losing popularity across key demographics.
For a time, advocates of aggressive immigration enforcement have leaned heavily on one argument: public opinion. They’ve claimed immigration change including deportations enjoy broad popular support, and that any effort to oppose them is somehow at odds with the American public.
But that claim is starting to fall apart. The numbers are shifting. The cracks in the narrative are showing. And with it, so is the political cover for one of the most destructive policies of the Trump administration.
President Trump’s second term has ushered in an unprecedented expansion of deportation policy. His administration has attempted to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for tens of thousands, reactivated the “Remain in Mexico” program, and dramatically increased raids, removals, and visa cancellations.
His Department of Homeland Security, now run by Secretary Kristi Noem, is attempting to dismantle oversight offices like the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL), drawing lawsuits from major civil rights organizations. It’s a bold, aggressive agenda—but it’s also increasingly unpopular.
In April 2025, a Washington Post-ABC-Ipsos poll found that 53% of Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of immigration—a reversal from earlier in the year, when opinion was nearly evenly split. Support for Trump’s specific deportation efforts is eroding across key demographics, including independents and Latino voters.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted around the same time found that only 45% of Americans approved of Trump’s immigration policies, with 48% disapproving. As immigration raids increase and family separations return to headlines, support is dropping—fast.
This decline reflects a deeper truth: Americans’ views on immigration are far more nuanced than the political rhetoric suggests.
According to Pew Research Center, only a slim majority of Republicans—around 54%—favor deporting all undocumented immigrants. Among Democrats, that number drops to just 10%. But across the board, overwhelming majorities support a path to legal status or citizenship for undocumented immigrants who meet certain conditions.
Gallup’s July 2024 poll revealed that, while 47% favor deportations in general terms, 70% also support a pathway to citizenship.
In other words, Americans are conflicted—but increasingly leaning toward compassion, not crackdowns.
This contradiction has always existed. But what’s changing is which instinct is prevailing. The visceral appeal of mass deportation—the political theater of “cleaning house”—is giving way to unease about its consequences: families torn apart, children left behind, labor shortages, legal chaos, and international condemnation. And for many Americans, it’s now clear that deportation as a policy solution is not only morally fraught—it’s also ineffective.
The administration’s current campaign relies heavily on automated visa terminations, expedited removals, and targeting long-time residents without criminal records. In California, student visa cancellations have become a new flashpoint. Dozens of international students from UC Davis and other campuses recently had their status revoked with no clear explanation—part of what advocates describe as a broader “quiet purge” of noncitizens.
In the past, such actions were defended as necessary and widely supported. But that support is fraying. Recent polling shows Trump’s approval among Hispanic voters has plunged since January. While he won 46% of the Latino vote in 2024—a significant share—his approval rating among Latinos now sits at just 34%, with 61% disapproving. Among younger Latino voters and women, disapproval is even higher.
The backlash is not confined to communities of color. Suburban voters, who helped re-elect Trump amid economic uncertainty, are growing wary of immigration policies that appear cruel or chaotic. Business leaders, particularly in tech, agriculture, and healthcare, are warning that mass deportations are creating staffing crises. Meanwhile, universities and research centers are losing international talent. The very sectors that fuel American innovation are being hollowed out by a policy rooted more in politics than practicality.
Even among Trump’s own allies, there’s a dawning recognition that the deportation dragnet may backfire. Legal challenges are mounting. Over 250 lawsuits have already been filed against Trump-era immigration actions in 2025 alone. Courts have blocked several enforcement directives, citing violations of due process, equal protection, and statutory overreach. Judges are warning that the administration is straining legal boundaries—and perhaps breaking them outright.
Institutions that previously hesitated to confront immigration enforcement—universities, city councils, religious organizations—are now speaking out forcefully. The chilling effect of raids and visa cancellations is being felt in classrooms, churches, and neighborhoods. Fear and silence are spreading—not among criminals, but among children, caregivers, and community leaders.
And then there’s the human toll. Behind the data are real stories—of families separated, of trauma inflicted, of dreams deferred. The administration’s strategy is not abstract; it is tangible, personal, and devastating for many. For every talking point about “law and order,” there is a child who no longer feels safe going to school, a worker who vanishes from their job, a parent who disappears without warning.
This, too, is becoming visible to the American public. And it is changing minds.
It’s worth remembering that Trump’s deportation agenda is not merely a continuation of past policy—it’s a significant escalation.
His rhetoric, his disregard for oversight, and his insistence on total enforcement go far beyond the bounds of even the harshest pre-2016 immigration policies. He has normalized a degree of cruelty that many Americans now regret tolerating.
And as with other Trump policies—his attacks on the judiciary, his crackdowns on protest, his attempts to consolidate executive power—the public’s patience is wearing thin.
If there is a political lesson here, it is this: public opinion is not static. It can shift, and it is shifting. The justifications that once seemed strong—“Americans support this,” “we’re just enforcing the law”—are losing their grip. The public is growing more skeptical, more informed, and more empathetic.
That doesn’t mean immigration reform will be easy. There are still deep divisions over how to structure legal immigration, what to do about the border, and how to ensure economic fairness. But the days of using “public opinion” as a blunt weapon to justify mass deportation may be coming to an end.
