President Trump's immigration approval drops to new low, poll finds
- - President Trump's immigration approval drops to new low, poll finds
Terry Collins, USA TODAYJanuary 27, 2026 at 6:10 AM
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American approval of President Donald Trump's immigration policy dropped to its lowest level since his return to the White House, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found, amid growing backlash after federal immigration agents fatally shot two people in Minneapolis this month.
The poll, conducted nationwide Jan. 23 through Jan. 25, gathered responses before and after immigration officers on Jan. 24 killed a second U.S. citizen in Minneapolis during confrontations with protesters over Trump's deployment of immigration agents to cities across the United States. 53% of Americans polled disapprove of the president's immigration policy, while 39% approve of the job Trump is doing on immigration, down from 41% in the prior Reuters/Ipsos poll this month.
The poll gathered responses from 1,139 U.S. adults and had a margin of error of about three percentage points.
1 / 10Vigils held for Alex Pretti, killed in Border Patrol related shootingMourners kneel at a makeshift memorial in the area where Alex Pretti was shot dead a day earlier by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 25, 2026. On January 24, federal agents shot dead US citizen Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, while scuffling with him on an icy roadway, less than three weeks after an immigration officer shot and killed Renee Good, also 37, in her car.
Immigration was a brighter spot for Trump's popularity in the weeks following his January inauguration. In Feb. 2025, 50% approved and 41% disapproved.
Trump won the 2024 presidential election after promising a historic surge in deportations. Masked immigration officers, often in tactical military-style gear, have become a common sight across the nation, and protests against the crackdown have erupted in several cities, including Minneapolis, where immigration agents have responded with deadly force.
ICU nurse Alex Pretti was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents in South Minneapolis on Jan. 24. Trump administration officials have accused Pretti, 37, a U.S. citizen, of assaulting officers during a protest in Minneapolis, though that account has appeared at odds with videos recorded by bystanders.
Earlier this month, Renee Nicole Good, 37, another U.S. citizen, was fatally shot by a federal agent in South Minneapolis on Jan. 7 during an immigration raid. Earlier on Jan. 26, Trump said he would send border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota to lead some operations on the ground.
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Trump's overall approval rating also slides
Trump's overall approval rating also slid to 38%, according to the latest Reuters/Ipsos poll, tying the lowest level of his current term, as it dropped from 41% in the prior Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted Jan. 12 to Jan. 13.
The survey also found that about 58% of Americans polled said Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have gone "too far" in their crackdown, while 12% said ICE had not gone far enough, and 26% said the agents' efforts were just "about right." About nine in 10 Democrats said the agents have gone too far, compared to two in 10 Republicans and six in 10 independents.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Jan. 26 said Trump agreed to consider reducing the number of immigration agents in Minnesota and will ensure state investigators can independently probe the Pretti shooting by Border Patrol agents. Walz's office said in a statement that he had a "productive" call with the president about an hour after Trump himself said the two were on a "similar wavelength."
Growing backlash: Anger grows in Minneapolis a day after federal agents kill nurse
Republican lawmakers have increasingly called for investigations into the killing of Pretti as Democrats refuse to fund the Department of Homeland Security despite the likelihood of a government shutdown.
Trump on Monday said he would send border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota to lead some operations on the ground. In Minneapolis, thousands of protesters braved subzero temperatures to decry the shooting and call for an end to the federal intervention.
Contributing: Christopher Cann, James Powel, Trevor Hughes, Joey Garrison, Erin Mansfield, Michael Loria, and Francesca Chambers, USA TODAY; Reuters
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump's immigration approval falls to a record low: New poll
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