What percentage of republicans still support Trump’s deportation policy
Executive summary
Pew polling in June 2025 shows Republicans are broadly supportive of Trump-era enforcement measures: majorities of Republicans approve all eight named administration immigration policies, with specific items like using state and local law enforcement to help deportation efforts supported by 59% of White adults and 56% favoring expanding the border wall [1] [2]. Other polls show very high Republican support for deporting noncitizens convicted of violent crimes—"more than 90% of Republicans" in a June Marist/NPR/PBS survey [3].
1. Republican support is high, but the exact percentage depends on the question asked
Polling does not report a single “Republican support for Trump’s deportation policy” percentage; it reports support for specific measures. Pew found Republicans “largely approve” of all eight Trump administration immigration policies asked about and gives item-level numbers—e.g., majorities back using state and local police to aid deportations and increasing federal deportation staff [1] [2]. PBS/Marist polling found more than 90% of Republicans back deporting noncitizen violent offenders [3]. Different wordings produce different magnitudes of support [1] [3].
2. How question wording and target population change the headline number
Surveys asked different things: Pew’s questions covered a suite of policies (border wall expansion, ICE raids, hiring more deportation staff) and reported party splits and subgroup differences [1] [2]. PBS/Marist asked about deporting immigrants without permanent status convicted of violent crimes and reported >90% Republican support [3]. National polls that frame “deportation” broadly can yield lower overall public support; Gallup and PBS reporting note shifts over 2024–25 with nuanced changes among Republicans on other immigration items [4] [5].
3. Demographics and intraparty splits matter
Pew highlights large racial and age divides within Republicans: White Republicans are much more likely than Hispanic Republicans to back increasing deportation staffing or ICE raids (e.g., 84% vs. 55% on increasing federal deportation staff; 82% vs. 58% on ICE raids) [1]. Pew also shows older Republicans are likelier to approve than younger ones [1]. These internal differences mean a single percentage masks meaningful variation [1] [2].
4. Political context—policy, money and state cooperation amplify support signals
Republican elected officials and some state governments have moved to back the administration’s enforcement drive: multiple Republican-led states enacted laws or signaled cooperation with federal deportation efforts (Florida, Tennessee, Iowa, Oklahoma examples) and commentators note state cooperation is essential to any scaled deportation plan [6] [7]. Congressional budget actions and the “One Big Beautiful Bill” or House proposals would add hundreds of billions to enforcement, reflecting institutional Republican support in parts of government even as civic pushback and legal limits continue [8] [9] [7].
5. Legal and factual limits complicate “mass deportation” claims
Fact-checking outlets note current U.S. jurisprudence bars deportation of U.S. citizens; procedural votes in Congress did not suddenly empower deporting citizens—critics’ framing sometimes overstates what votes did [10] [11]. Independent analysts warn that the administration’s ambitious targets (arresting thousands per day, deporting one million per year) face logistical, legal and cost constraints—even sympathetic reports note that prior Trump-era deportations never exceeded ~350,000 annually and that scaling to the proposed levels would require state cooperation and major funding [7] [12].
6. Competing narratives in the reporting—support vs. backlash
Mainline polling cited here shows strong Republican backing for hardline measures, particularly for deporting criminal noncitizens and for beefing up enforcement machinery [3] [1]. At the same time, outlets and advocacy groups highlight legal challenges, civil liberties concerns and the potential human cost and fiscal burden of mass deportation plans, arguing practical outcomes differ from political rhetoric [12] [8]. Both strands appear in the sources: institutional Republican support and state cooperation on one hand [6] [7], and critics documenting limits, legal constraints and costs on the other [12] [10].
Limitations: available sources do not provide a single, definitive percentage labeled “percentage of Republicans who still support Trump’s deportation policy” as a unitary figure; instead they offer item-level poll results and analyses that vary by question wording, subgroup and timing [1] [3] [4].