(Center of the American Experiment) — Legislation proposed in the 2024 session to make Minnesota a sanctuary state faces stiff opposition, according to the March 2024 Thinking Minnesota poll. The proposal to prohibit any Minnesota entity from cooperating with federal immigration authorities is opposed by 59% of respondents, with 47% saying they are “strongly opposed.” An even greater number of Minnesotans (69%) believe the federal government is not doing enough about illegal immigration and the crisis at the border.
The poll was conducted by Meeting Street Insights, a nationally recognized polling operation based in Charleston, S.C. Using a mix of cellular and landline phones, the company interviewed 500 registered voters across Minnesota from March 11-13. The margin of error is +/-4.38 percent.
During the 2023 session, the Minnesota legislature granted several new benefits to illegal immigrants including state driver’s licenses, free health care and free college tuition.
“These numbers confirm that Minnesotans understand the burden our state will experience by becoming a sanctuary state and a magnet for illegal immigrants from around the country and the world,” said John Hinderaker, President of Center of the American Experiment. “The failures of sanctuary policies in big cities like New York, Chicago and Denver are obviously not lost on our poll respondents in Minnesota.”
American Experiment’s campaign against this proposal may also be reflected in these numbers. The No Sanctuary State landing page has received 41,000 visitors facilitating 18,600 emails sent to legislators against this legislation.
The complete results of the March poll will be available in the next issue of Thinking Minnesota magazine.
Bill Walsh
Bill Walsh is the Communications Director at Center of the American Experiment.
