U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is leading the charge for immigration reform and, according to a poll released on Thursday, his home state is supporting his efforts.
Public Policy Polling (PPP), a firm with ties to prominent Democrats, unveiled a poll on Thursday that shows a solid majority of Florida voters -- 67 percent -- believe that immigration reform, namely creating a pathway to citizenship, is important while 29 percent do not think it is that important. More than two-fifths of those surveyed -- 43 percent -- said this is a very important issue.
Immigration is incredibly important to Florida voters no matter who they are, said David Winkler, vice president and director of research for Project New America, which helped sponsor the poll, in a call with the media on Thursday.
The poll showed that this issue could have major implications for candidates running for statewide office. Almost a majority -- 49 percent -- said they are more likely to vote for candidates who support immigration reform while 29 percent say they are less likely to vote for candidates who back it.
According to the poll, the overwhelming majority of Floridians hope Congress tackles immigration reform, with 51 percent saying it is very important for Congress to push this issue in 2013 and 32 percent saying it is somewhat important to tackle immigration reform this year. Only 16 percent say it is not important for Congress to handle immigration reform this year.
The poll also shows that 56 percent of those surveyed say documenting everyone makes their communities safer while 30 percent disagree.
But the poll found Floridians thought immigration reform was a mixed blessing to the economy. Only 38 percent of those surveyed say immigration reform will help the economy and the same percentage believe it will hurt it.
The poll was commissioned by two groups with ties to Democrats -- Project New America and Florida New Majority -- but they sampled more Republicans (42 percent of the total population polled) than Democrats (40 percent of the total sample).
While immigration reform appears likely to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate, its prospects in the Republican-dominated House are much less certain. PPP polled four districts with Republican congressmen and found solid support for immigration reform across the state.
The poll did have some good news for Republicans. Statewide, 43 percent of those surveyed said the Republicans can be trusted more on immigration while 40 percent said Democrats could manage it better.
Looking at the 10th Congressional District, currently represented by U.S. Rep. Dan Webster, R-Fla, 63 percent of those surveyed support immigration reform. Once again 49 percent of those surveyed said they are more likely to vote for candidates who support immigration reform while 29 percent said they are less likely to vote for supporters of immigration reform.
The same holds true in the 12th Congressional District which is currently represented by U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla. Two thirds of the voters surveyed there -- 67 percent -- support creating a path to citizenship and a majority -- 52 percent -- say they are more likely to back candidates who share this position. More than a third of voters -- 34 percent -- say they are less likely to vote for candidates who support immigration reform.
In the 15th Congressional District, represented by U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., 69 percent of those surveyed say they back creating a path to citizenship. While 27 percent say they are less likely to back candidates pushing for immigration reform, 53 percent say they are more likely to vote for politicians who support creating a path to citizenship.
The same pattern holds in the 17th Congressional District where U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla, holds office, with 66 percent saying they support immigration reform. Once again, a solid majority -- 55 percent -- say they are more likely to back candidates who support immigration reform while 27 percent say they are less likely to vote for supporters of it.
This is an issue where the voters are hungry for action, Winkler said. Theyre willing to get behind a candidate who supports this.
The poll of 621 voters across the state had a margin of error of +/- 3.9 percent. The poll of 502 voters in the 10th Congressional District had a margin of error of +/- 4.4 percent. The poll of 543 voters in the 12th Congressional District had a margin of error of +/- 4.2 percent. The poll of 505 voters in the 15th Congressional District had a margin of error of +/- 4.4 percent. The poll of 500 voters in the 17th Congressional District had a margin of error of +/- 4. percent. All of the polls were taken from April 26-29.
Tallahassee political writer Jeff Henderson wrote this story exclusively for Sunshine State News.
