Looking at the results Wednesday morning, 2012 may best be described as the Status Quo Election. President Obama won re-election, the Democrats maintained their majority in the Senate, and the Republicans maintained their majority in the House of Representatives. Moreover, while some races are still undecided, it appears that both parties have held control of their respective chambers by roughly the same margin as before.
Clearly, the economy was the first issue on voters’ minds. According to an Associated Press exit poll, 59 percent of voters identified the economy as their top issue (Associated Press, Nov. 7, 2012) Those who felt the economy is improving (four out of 10 voters) tended to vote for President Obama, while those who felt the economy is worsening (three out of 10 voters) tended to vote for Governor Romney. (Id.)
Moreover, most voters (about 75 percent) perceived President Obama’s policies would more likely to help the middle class and poor. In contrast, 53 percent said Romney’s policies would favor the rich; 34 percent thought his policies would do more for middle-class America. (Id.)
President Obama also fared better among several demographics. Women, in particular, helped President Obama win re-election, voting 55 percent in favor of the President and only 44 percent in favor of Governor Romney. In addition, about 93 percent of African Americans and about 71 percent of Hispanics voted for the President. No doubt these results will lead many pundits to claim that Republicans have an “immigration position” problem that requires a whole-hearted embrace of amnesty.
However, polling conducted before the election shows that Hispanic voters, like voters across America, were focused on the economy. In fact, multiple polling firms reported that likely and registered Hispanic voters listed numerous other issues as being more important to them than immigration. According to a USA Today/Gallup poll released in June, only 12% of registered Hispanic voters stated that immigration policy was the issue most important to them, taking a backseat to “healthcare” (21%), “unemployment” (19%), “economic growth” (17%), and “the gap between the rich and the poor” (16%). (USA Today/Gallup Poll, June 25, 2012)
In September, Fox News Latino released a poll of likely Hispanic voters, in which 48% percent indicated the “economy” was their number one voting issue. The economy was followed by healthcare (14%), “education” (11%), and social issues (8%). Only six percent claimed that immigration was the most important issue to them when deciding who to vote for. (Fox News Latino Poll, Sept. 18, 2012)
In October, the Pew Hispanic Center released a poll showing similar results. Pew found that more registered Hispanic voters found the issues of “education” (55%), “jobs and the economy” (54%), “healthcare” (50%), and the “federal budget deficit” (36%) to be more important than the issue of immigration when deciding whom to vote for. Only 34% of registered Hispanic voters considered immigration to be “an extremely important” issue to them. (Pew Hispanic Center Poll, Oct. 11, 2012)
What does this mean for immigration reform? In the final days of the campaign, President Obama promised to tackle immigration in the first year of his second term. Now that the election results are in and it appears that the balance of power in Congress is largely the same, there is a very real chance that the President will push his amnesty agenda in the Democratically-controlled Senate. But the House of Representatives, which gained immigration enforcement advocates in 2010, will still present a serious challenge for the President’s agenda. Hopefully, enforcement-minded Republicans will see the voting patterns for what they are – economically based – and hold their ground against what will surely be increased pressure to pass amnesty legislation.
To see FAIR’s press releases on the 2012 election, click here.
5 Comments
I never saw any ads promising that “immigration reform” would be one of the president’s first priorities. Maybe Spanish language stations but not others. Now it’s one of the first things he’s announced he’s getting behind. That was the problem in reelecting him, no matter what you thought of Romney. He;s now free to push anything he wants because he never has to answer to the voters again.
The Immigration Reform Amnesty Our Dem/Rep Foreign Corporation Funded Turncoats Plan for Us
Includes CONSTITUTIONALLY ILLEGAL birthright citizenship for foreigners…..its CLEARLY made us the laughing stock of the world.
We need someone who can articulate a common-sense immigration policy. I wish FAIRUS could do that.
A common sense immigration policy for this country would be to demand that all those who do not have permission to be here, leave. Then a ten year moratorium planced on all immigration until we straighten out this mess. I’m tired of seeing “diversity” lauded as strength. We send money to most countries, even our enemies, then we’re expected to take in their people too. The last twenty years or so has brought a very different type of “immigrant,” nowhere near the true immigrant of old. These people want, expect and demand that we conform to their ways, language and culture, never attempting to assimilate at all. And before the bleeding hearts start wringing their hands, I’d ask them if they really want our newest population to be composed of those whose first act was to break our laws. There is no excuse for that. None! Add to this criteria, I would place our returning military on the border, stop the misinterpreted birthright citizenship folly and let the world know we are no longer its dumping ground.
The Best Hope We Have of Getting “New Blood” Candidates for the People
Instead of WTO candidates paid off by foreign/corporate “Confederate Flag Red Neck Slave Lords” posing as liberals, is something even Obama voiced he’s in favor of too:
We must get the Supreme Court to overturn its 2010 5-4 decision to allow foreign/corporate bribe campaign money ruining our elections’ candidate selections and making everything “status quo”.