President Biden’s “Parole in Place” Program Is Popular With Voters

By Lew Blank

Last Tuesday, President Biden announced a new “Parole in Place” immigration program, which will offer work permits, protection from deportation, and a streamlined path to citizenship for about 500,000 eligible undocumented immigrants.

The program is specifically targeted to immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for at least 10 years, are married to a U.S. citizen, and meet other requirements. If upheld in court, it would be the largest government program for undocumented immigrants since the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in 2012.

In a new survey, Data for Progress finds that 63% of voters — including 85% of Democrats, 58% of Independents, and 40% of Republicans — support the Parole in Place initiative.

The survey also asked voters about a separate Biden administration immigration plan, which would provide a streamlined process for DACA recipients and other undocumented immigrants to more easily obtain temporary employment-based visas, such as H-1B visas for high-skilled workers. This is targeted exclusively to immigrants who have graduated from an accredited U.S. college and have an offer from an American employer for a highly skilled job.

The survey finds that 66% of voters support this plan. This includes majorities of Democrats (81%) and Independents (66%) and a plurality of Republicans (49%).

Data for Progress’ previous polling has consistently found that immigration is one of voters’ top issues this election and that an overwhelming majority of voters believe that reforming the immigration system should be a priority for the U.S. government.

This new poll shows that voters support new actions from the Biden administration to extend deportation protection, work permits, visas, and a path to citizenship to a greater number of undocumented immigrants.

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Lew Blank (@LewBlank) is a communications strategist at Data for Progress.