A recent poll in New York State shows that over 40% of voters support deporting illegal immigrants residing in the United States. However, at the same time, a majority of respondents are dissatisfied with the actions of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), especially in light of recent law enforcement operations in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
According to a survey released last week by Siena College, 61% of respondents disagree with ICE’s current enforcement methods, including 81% of Democratic voters and 54% of independent voters. In contrast, 61% of Republican voters support ICE’s enforcement practices.
Despite this, attitudes towards “whether illegal immigrants should be deported” remain relatively stable among voters. 43% of respondents support deporting illegal immigrants, 35% oppose it, and another 20% remain neutral, which is similar to the results from a similar question posed by Siena in May last year.
Steve Greenberg, a spokesperson for the Siena poll, pointed out that Republican voters generally have a positive view of ICE, not only supporting its enforcement methods but also with nearly three-quarters of voters advocating for an increase in ICE personnel stationed in New York City. On the other hand, Democratic and independent voters mostly have a negative opinion of ICE, disagreeing with its practices and not supporting increased deployment of personnel.
In terms of the governor’s approval rating, the current governor’s popularity has reached a new high in the Siena poll. The latest results show that 49% of respondents have a favorable view of the governor, with 40% holding a negative view, resulting in a net approval rating of positive 9 percentage points. This marks the first time since the end of 2022 that she has had a higher support rate than a non-support rate in the poll for two consecutive months.
While a 49% approval rating may not be impressive on its own, it is the first time in Governor’s four and a half years in office that she has garnered positive feelings from nearly half of the voters in the Siena poll.
However, the poll also indicated that 51% of respondents prefer someone else to hold the position of governor, with only 42% explicitly supporting the governor’s re-election.