Poll: Majority of Americans Support Citizenship Question on 2020 Census

In a Hill-HarrisX poll published on Tuesday, 60% of respondents said that a citizenship question should be included in the coming 2020 census.

The majority of Americans polled believe that the next U.S. Census should include the question of legal citizenship, “even if it means fewer people might fill out the questionnaire.” Only 20% oppose the idea, while 19% remain unsure.

The Trump administration has defended the controversial idea since its announcement by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. Just last Wednesday, Trump himself spoke out about the issue on Twitter, saying it was “a really big deal,” and that Americans “deserve to know.”

The American people deserve to know who is in this Country. Yesterday, the Supreme Court took up the Census Citizenship question, a really big deal. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 24, 2019

It appears that, in fact, the country largely shares his position.

The opposition has argued that including such a question would deter illegal immigrants from responding to the survey, which will make it more difficult to accurately allocate funds to communities in need. A government estimate suggests that roughly 6.5 million fewer people might participate.

The sudden change could also ripple through Congress, as the seats are based on official district populations. Yet despite the typical divisions along party lines, voters from all demographics — including both Black and Hispanic communities — supported the question by a clear majority. Even among Democrats, 49% supported the question; just 33% opposed it.

This morning, U.S. Census Bureau Director Dr. Steven Dillingham testified at the House Oversight hearing regarding the bureau’s preparation to conduct the 2020 U.S. Census.