Slim Majority of U.S. Voters Oppose Immigration Enforcement in Schools, Poll Finds

A slim majority of U.S. voters oppose immigration enforcement in schools, according to a new Morning Consult poll commissioned by The Century Foundation. The survey found that 51% of respondents opposed allowing immigration enforcement at K-12 schools. Among respondents who voted for president Trump in 2024, 39% supported keeping officials away from school grounds, while 36% were opposed, and 18% were neutral.

The issue has gained renewed attention as several states consider measures that could alter access to public education for undocumented students. In Tennessee, for example, a bill allowing school districts to deny education to undocumented children advanced in the state legislature on Tuesday, as Nashville Banner reports.

The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Bo Watson (R-Hixson) and Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland), would permit school boards to determine whether to require proof of legal status for enrollment. The proposal challenges the 1982 Supreme Court ruling in Plyler v. Doe, which guarantees public education for all children regardless of immigration status.

Lamberth defended the bill by arguing that children without lawful immigration status would ultimately face barriers to employment and licensing:

“If you cannot provide lawful immigration status as an adult, you cannot be lawfully employed, you cannot be lawfully licensed and you cannot take advantage of that education you got”

At the forefront of the resistance to such initiatives lies Denver Public Schools which sued the Trump administration back in early February challenging the policy that allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to operate on school grounds, becoming the first school district in the country.

A federal judge, however, ruled against Denver Public Schools’ attempt to block immigration arrests on school grounds on Monday, arguing that the district failed to show how recent federal policy changes directly impacted its schools.

Other findings from the Morning Consult poll, reported by Axios, revealed that 61% of voters said they supported the Supreme Court’s recent ruling reaffirming the right to free public education for all students, including undocumented immigrants. Slightly less than half (49%) of both Republicans and Trump voters said they strongly or somewhat supported the decision, compared to over three-quarters (76%) of Democrats.