04 OCT 2022
New Poll: Majority of Americans Support Asylum for Venezuelans, Latinos Say GOP Governors Are Pulling a Political Stunt Ahead of the Midterms
Washington, DC — Today, the Immigration Hub released the results of a new national survey, conducted by Civiqs, surveying registered voters across the country. The survey finds that a majority of Americans (63%), across party lines, believe that people who are fleeing Venezuela and other communist regimes should be allowed to legally request protection. The survey also found that a plurality of Hispanic voters (65%) believe that Governors Ron DeSantis (R-FL) and Greg Abbott (R-TX) are pulling a political stunt by flying and bussing migrants across the country ahead of the November elections.
In Florida, Governor DeSantis’ continues to face backlash for his latest political stunt to lie, lure, and ship off dozens of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. Republicans across the country continue to distance themselves from DeSantis and some have denounced the governor for wasting money on a frivolous political stunt. In his own state, DeSantis is also facing a lawsuit from state legislators who say he mishandled taxpayer money and Democrats in the legislature are asking the Department of Justice to investigate the governor’s administration for using “deception and coercion” to transport Venezuelan migrants and their children.
Turning Off Key Voters
Some Republicans worry that the stunt, which some experts have labeled “a different shade of family separation,” could cost Republicans key voters from the Venezuelan voting bloc in Florida, the fastest growing Latino community in the state. Scenes of Venezuelan refugees stranded in Massachusetts orchestrated by DeSantis have angered the Venezuelan community and other Latino communities alike in Florida, who have fled similar oppressive regimes. Venezuelan community leaders have organized against DeSantis in Orlando, Miami, Doral and other parts of the state to ensure he is held accountable, calling the stunt “a new low for the governor.” As MSNBC’s Steve Benen wrote:
“When a governor is being compared to Castro on Spanish-language radio in the Miami area, that’s not great for a Republican incumbent in an election year.”
Democrats like gubernatorial candidate Charlie Crist, congressional candidate Annette Taddeo and the Florida Democratic Party continue to call out DeSantis and Florida Republicans’ hypocrisy, boasting support for Venezuelans and those fleeing communist regimes while turning them away when they seek protection.
“The immigrant stories of so many Latinos in Florida are of mothers and fathers, children and grandparents fleeing communist regimes, violent civil wars and political persecution,” stated Beatriz Lopez, a Miami native and Chief Political and Communications Officer for the Immigration Hub. “Just like my own family, they all found safety and a welcoming home in Florida. DeSantis is not only maligning the state’s rich history of immigrants who have helped build Florida into what it is today and who will even now assist in its recovery, but he’s making it clear to Venezuelans, Latinos and their tax dollars that he’s willing to play games with human lives like a fascist. None of us like to be reminded of the dictators our families fled from— come Election Day, there will be some reckoning at the ballot box.”
Key findings:
A new national survey conducted by Civiqs for The Immigration Hub finds broad, cross-partisan agreement that people who are fleeing Venezuela and other communist regimes to seek safety in the United States should be allowed to legally request protection.
This view is shared by 63% of Americans, support is highest among Democrats (86%), but a majority of Independents (57%) and a plurality of Republicans (41%) also believe in allowing requests for protection in the U.S.
Two-thirds (69%) of Hispanic voters believe that people who are fleeing Venezuela and other communist regimes to seek safety in the United States should be allowed to legally request protection.
There is majority support for allowing people to legally request protection in the United States across all age groups, as well as in urban areas (67%), suburban areas (64%), and rural areas (59%).
Additionally, the poll also found that a majority of Hispanic voters (65%) believe that the Republican governors of Florida and Texas who are busing and flying immigrants who are fleeing persecution are pulling a political stunt ahead of the November elections.
ABOUT THE SURVEY: Civiqs conducted an online survey of 3007 registered voters in the United States from September 21 to 26, 2022. The survey results are weighted by age, race, gender, education, party identification, and standard federal region to be representative of the population of registered voters in the United States. The survey has a margin of error of ± 1.9% at the 95% confidence level.
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The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.