Hispanic Texans Want a Border Wall

A new poll found a majority of Hispanic Texans showing support for constructing a border wall as the United States continues grappling with an influx in migrant arrivals at the southern border.

Immigration matters have been catapulted to the forefront of political discourse ahead of the 2024 presidential election as more migrants continue entering the U.S. The high number of asylum seekers crossing the U.S.-Mexico border has created a headache for President Joe Biden and other Democrats hoping to make gains in November as Republicans blame their policies for the increase, though experts note that external political and economic factors also drive migration.

There were more than 2.4 million encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border during the 2023 fiscal year, up from roughly 1.7 million in 2021, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data.

A new poll of Texas voters found broad support for more stringent border efforts, including the construction of a physical barrier along the border.

The "border wall" served as a cornerstone of former President Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. The idea faced ridicule from Democrats at the time, as critics argued a wall would do little to curb illegal immigration. But large swaths of the barrier have been constructed, including under the Biden administration.

The poll, conducted by the University of Texas and Texas Politics Project, found that more than 50 percent of Hispanic voters support building a border wall. Hispanic voters are a crucial voter bloc in Texas for Democrats, who have hoped to make gains in the traditionally conservative state that has shifted away from Republicans in recent election cycles.

The poll asked Texans whether they support or oppose Texas "constructing and/or repairing walls or physical barriers on the border between Texas and Mexico" to respond to migration.

Newsweek reached out to the University of Texas pollsters for comment via email.

Thirty-seven percent of Hispanic respondents said they "strongly support" this, while 19 percent said they "somewhat" support the border wall. Twenty-two percent strongly oppose and 12 percent somewhat oppose the wall, while an additional 10 percent said they do not know how they feel about it.

Notably, they were less supportive of other measures taken by the Texas government, such as placing barbed wire and buoys along the border to prevent migrants from entering the U.S.

Only 29 percent said they strongly supported wire and buoys, while 13 percent said they somewhat supported those measures. Meanwhile, 36 percent said they strongly opposed and 13 percent said they somewhat opposed these efforts.

In total, 65 percent of all Texans supported the wall, while 57 percent said they supported the wire and buoys.

Hispanic voters in Texas have shifted toward Republicans, even as the state overall became more competitive, in recent elections. In 2016, 61 percent voted for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, while only 34 percent backed Trump. In 2020, 58 percent backed Biden, while 41 percent supported Trump, according to CNN exit polls.