Biden faces complex juggling act on immigration as election nears

While the number of migrant arrivals and detentions at the US-Mexico border has fallen this year after historic highs earlier in the Biden administration, polls continue to show widespread alarm over the issue.

A May Gallup poll found that 18% of US voters view immigration as their top issue, down from 27% in April, the third consecutive month it topped the list of concerns.

A more recent survey conducted by YouGov and CBS, the BBC’s US partner, found that a majority of registered voters, or 62%, favoured a nationwide programme to deport all undocumented immigrants in the US – an often-repeated promise of the Trump campaign.

The poll also found that mass deportations were popular with Hispanic voters, with 53 percent saying they would support such a move.

Mr Heye, the Republican strategist, said the polling numbers suggest that immigration is a winning issue for the Trump campaign and in state races for Congressional seats.

“Republicans feel that they can win on this issue, and they think they can win some Hispanic voters on it as well,” he added. “The centre has shifted right on this issue”.

The BBC has contacted the Biden campaign for comment.

It’s unclear whether Mr Biden’s recent actions will help quell some of the unease among voters on immigration, but some strategists caution that perceptions could change significantly between now and the November election.

Democratic strategist Ameshia Cross said that the absence of any meaningful immigration reform in Congress, largely as a result of Republican opposition, will allow him to show that his “hands are tied” and that his executive actions have contributed to falling migrant figures.

“Republicans have stalled this multiple times. The only tool at the disposal of the president is executive actions,” Ms Cross said. “Obviously, there are going to be some progressive leaders…and Latino legislators who are at odds with that.”

Ms Cross added that Democrats and independents concerned about Mr Biden’s immigration policies will likely have to “compromise” to help propel a Biden victory. Any prospect of reforms would not be possible under Mr Trump, she added.

“Either they step to the table and are willing to make that happen, or they do not and fight to elect more people who believe the same way they do,” she said. “Right now, the numbers just aren’t in their favour.”