Border State Voters Support Humane Immigration Reform

Border State Voters Support Humane Immigration Reform

Border State Voters Support Humane Immigration Reform

A poll of Arizona voters shows that, unlike their elected officials, they care more about policy than congressional procedure.

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

As President Joe Biden attempts to reshape the United States’ often-brutal immigration policy, congressional Democrats are under pressure to address the growing humanitarian crisis on the border and deliver a more comprehensive overhaul of the system. This week, the House passed a pair of immigration bills that would establish paths to citizenship or legal status for millions of undocumented immigrants, including those known as Dreamers and undocumented farmworkers.

Though the bills are only modest pieces of Biden’s broader immigration package, the legislation is expected to face near-insurmountable opposition in the Senate due to the 60-vote procedural requirement. Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who, along with West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, seems poised to become one of the most prominent swing voters among Senate Democrats, is against killing this supermajority filibuster rule. Her fellow Arizona senator, Democrat Mark Kelly, has been evasive about his position, deferring to platitudes about “bipartisanship.” But recent polling has found that a majority of voters in Sinema’s state believe passing major legislation is more important than preserving archaic Senate procedure.

A February Data for Progress poll found that a majority of Arizona’s likely voters support the Dream Act, ending private detention centers, giving undocumented essential workers a path to citizenship, and the For the People Act, a crucial voting rights and campaign finance reform package that recently passed the House and now faces the Senate.

In the survey, 66 percent of likely voters said they support the Dream Act, while 54 percent supported ending the use of private, for-profit detention facilities to hold immigrants. Both of Arizona’s senators have previously expressed support for the Dream Act—but the Dream Act, as well as any other significant reform, will be doomed without the elimination of the filibuster.

“I’m hopeful that Senator Kelly understands that his imminent political survival requires ending the filibuster and passing the For the People Act so enough Arizonans can vote easily to reelect him next year,” said Kai Newkirk, a progressive organizer and founder of For All.

“As for Senator Sinema, she has to make a moral choice about what she values more. Is it protecting her constituents’ right to vote, finally bringing millions of undocumented immigrants out of the shadows, preserving a livable planet for future generations—all the things she went into public service to do for people? Or her attachments to the bipartisan deal-making of the past and an outdated Senate rule. This polling shows that she also has to choose between listening to an actual bipartisan majority of Arizonans or sticking to her increasingly isolated and extreme position.”

Sixty-seven percent of likely Arizona voters said they support the For the People Act, or HR 1, compared with 18 percent who opposed it. If enacted, HR 1 would drastically expand voting rights, creating a national system for automatic voter registration, ordering nonpartisan redistricting commissions to end gerrymandering, and targeting other Republican attempts at voter suppression. The bill also includes measures that would crack down on the influence of the ultra-wealthy in politics, requiring super PACs and dark-money groups to disclose donors and establishing a public matching fund for small-dollar donations to candidates.

“If the choice is between keeping the filibuster and passing S 1—and it is—the choice has to be S 1. It’s clear that Arizonans do not want to see their right to vote threatened, but if the GOP has their way, that’s exactly what will happen,” said Abigail Jackson, federal communications coordinator for Progress Arizona and an organizer of the Data for Progress poll.

“Democrats right now are uniquely positioned to enact commonsense democracy reform and shield voters from these targeted attacks with the popular For the People Act. This bill is bipartisan where it matters—among 67 percent of Arizona voters—and it can pass the Senate, but not without Sinema’s support for the elimination of the filibuster.”

The poll, which surveyed 662 participants, was conducted from February 19 to 22, and has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.

We need your support

What’s at stake this November is the future of our democracy. Yet Nation readers know the fight for justice, equity, and peace doesn’t stop in November. Change doesn’t happen overnight. We need sustained, fearless journalism to advocate for bold ideas, expose corruption, defend our democracy, secure our bodily rights, promote peace, and protect the environment.

This month, we’re calling on you to give a monthly donation to support The Nation’s independent journalism. If you’ve read this far, I know you value our journalism that speaks truth to power in a way corporate-owned media never can. The most effective way to support The Nation is by becoming a monthly donor; this will provide us with a reliable funding base.

In the coming months, our writers will be working to bring you what you need to know—from John Nichols on the election, Elie Mystal on justice and injustice, Chris Lehmann’s reporting from inside the beltway, Joan Walsh with insightful political analysis, Jeet Heer’s crackling wit, and Amy Littlefield on the front lines of the fight for abortion access. For as little as $10 a month, you can empower our dedicated writers, editors, and fact checkers to report deeply on the most critical issues of our day.

Set up a monthly recurring donation today and join the committed community of readers who make our journalism possible for the long haul. For nearly 160 years, The Nation has stood for truth and justice—can you help us thrive for 160 more?

Onwards,
Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

Ad Policy
x