Most Maine Voters Against Amnesty in ‘Build Back Better’

Fewer than 1-in-4 Maine voters are in favor of an amnesty provision for illegal immigrants in the “Build Back Better” legislation, and most would vote against a member of Congress who supports the measure.

A new telephone and online survey by Rasmussen Reports and NumbersUSA finds that just 23% of Likely Maine Voters approve of a provision in the Build Back Better bill that would offer 10 years of work permits and legal status to approximately 8 million illegal immigrants. Another 20% would only support the proposed 10-year amnesty if it includes provisions to stop future illegal immigration. Twenty-four percent (24%) say no amnesty should be considered until the border is under control, while 28% oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants under any condition. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

The House of Representatives last month passed the $2-trillion spending bill, which Democrats hope to enact through a “reconciliation” procedure to overcome a Senate filibuster.  Maine voters are about evenly divided over the Build Back Better legislation in general – 42% in favor and 44% against it – but 56% say they would be more inclined to vote against a member of Congress who supported the amnesty provision in the bill. Just 23% say support for amnesty would make them more likely to vote for a member of Congress, while 16% say it would not make much difference. 

While 43% of Democratic voters in Maine support the Build Back Better provision that would offer 10 years of work permits and legal status to approximately 8 million illegal immigrants, just nine percent (9%) of Republicans and 19% of voters not affiliated with either major party support the amnesty. That could put pressure on Maine Sen. Angus King, who identifies as an independent.

“The results of this survey suggest that, if Senator King is to honor his promise to Maine voters to operate as a true Independent, he will take note that the amnesty in the Build Back Better bill is overwhelmingly opposed among Maine voters in general and particularly by those who say they are neither Republican nor Democrat,” said Roy Beck, president and founder of the NumbersUSA Education & Research Foundation, which sponsored the poll. “The Democratic Party is twisting the arms of its Senators to support something that voters in most of their states oppose. But Senator King who is not a member of that party should be able to keep his arms to himself and be unimpeded in listening to the wishes of his constituents.”

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The survey of 725 Maine Likely Voters was conducted on December 7-9, 2021 by Rasmussen Reports and Numbers USA. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

About 200,000 foreign migrants have been illegally crossing the border from Mexico each month since President Joe Biden took office. Seventy-five percent (75%) of Maine voters are concerned about the level of illegal crossings, including 53% who are Very Concerned. Just 25% are not concerned about the level of illegal border crossings. Seventy-four percent (74%) Maine Republicans and 57% unaffiliated voters, but only 24% of Democrats, say they’re Very Concerned about the level of illegal crossings.

Among other findings of the survey:

– Only 26% of Maine voters believe the federal government is doing about as much as it should to control the border with Mexico, while 63% think the government should adopt stricter policies. Majorities of both black voters (82%) and Hispanics (53%) support stricter border control policies, as do 63% of whites.

– By a 23-point margin, more Maine voters (55%) believe the amnesty provision in the Build Back Better bill would encourage more illegal border crossings than think it wouldn’t make much difference (32%). Majorities of both Republicans (80%) and unaffiliated voters (56%) in Maine believe the amnesty would encourage more illegal crossings, while most Democrats (58%) think it wouldn’t make much difference.

– More than twice as many Maine voters (61%) think most people who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally should be returned to Mexico than the 30% who believe such illegal crossers should be allowed to live and work in the U.S. until requested to appear in court.

– By more than a 3-to-1 margin, Maine voters believe the government should mandate that all employers use the federal electronic E-Verify system to help ensure that they hire only legal workers for U.S. jobs.

– President Biden’s strongest supporters are also the most likely to support the amnesty provision in the Build Back Better bill. Among Maine voters who Strongly Approve of Biden’s job performance as president, 60% approve of the provision to offer work permits and legal status to illegal immigrants. By contrast, among those who Strongly Disapprove of Biden’s performance, only two percent (2%) approve of the provision, while 35% say no amnesty should be considered until the border is under control, and another 56% oppose amnesty for illegal immigrants under any condition.

Nearly two-thirds of voters in New Hampshire oppose the amnesty provision for illegal immigrants in the “Build Back Better” legislation, which is supported by the state’s Democratic senators.

West Virginia voters overwhelmingly oppose the “Build Back Better” amnesty, bolstering Democratic Sen. Joe Machin’s opposition to the measure.

Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to the public as well as to Platinum Members. 

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The survey of 725 Maine Likely Voters was conducted on December 7-9, 2021 by Rasmussen Reports and Numbers USA. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.