Americans Pessimistic About Passage Of Immigration Reform, Poll Finds

After years of partisan gridlock in Washington, a majority of voters don’t have faith that the U.S. Congress will pass a comprehensive immigration reform bill, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Friday.

By a wide margin of 74 percent to 24 percent, voters said that Democrats and Republicans would not be able to reach a deal on immigration.

This pessimism held true across demographics and party affiliations, although constituencies more favorable to reform were slightly more optimistic. Thirty-three percent of Democrats said reform could pass, compared to 17 percent of Republicans and 21 percent of independents. Hispanic voters were more optimistic than white respondents. Black voters were the most optimistic with 39 percent believing reform would pass.

The same poll also showed that former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s approval numbers have slipped recently, but voters would still choose her over Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, R, in a 2016 presidential match-up. Clinton’s approval rating was 52 percent, down from 61 percent in November.

"Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton remains the queen of the 2016 hill at this point, but the wide gap between her and some of the leading Republican contenders on favorability may be closing, as her overall favorability has taken a hit," Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said in a press release.

Quinnipiac interviewed 1,419 registered voters between May 22 and May 28, 2013. The poll has a margin of error of +/-2.6 percentage points.