Poll: Large Majority In Steve King’s District Backs Path To Citizenship

Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, speaks at the 40th annual Conservative Political Action Conference in National Harbor, Md., Thursday, March 14, 2013. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
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As Rep. Steve King (R-IA) continues to draw scorn for disparaging remarks he made about young undocumented immigrants in the country, a poll released Wednesday showed big support in the tea party Republican’s Iowa district for a provision both he and much of the House GOP oppose.

The poll was conducted late last month by The Tarrance Group, a Republican firm, on behalf of the conservative American Action Network and was first reported by Politico. AAN has been one of the leading conservative groups to push for immigration reform.

According to the findings, 68 percent of voters in Iowa’s Fourth Congressional District support an “earned pathway to legal status” and a slightly smaller majority of 65 percent supports an “earned pathway to citizenship.” Moreover, the poll found that 70 percent of Republicans in King’s district support a pathway to legal status while 51 percent said they support a path to citizenship. 

The pollster found that support grows even stronger when respondents were provided with specific requirements to attain legal status. For example, 79 percent of district voters overall, and 72 percent of Republicans, said they are in favor of giving “permanent resident status” to young undocumented immigrants who serve in the military and have no criminal record.

King has been widely denounced for saying last week that for every young undocumented immigrant who grows up to be valedictorian, there are 100 more “that weigh 130 pounds and they’ve got calves the size of cantaloupes because they’re hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert.” Jim Mowrer, the Democrat who’s challenging King next year, said in a statement that the remark doesn’t accurately represent the views of voters in Iowa’s Fourth. 

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