Exit polls from the 2026 midterm elections show that immigration enforcement, including aspects of the Trump administration’s deportation policies, retained support among subsets of voters even as Republicans lost control of both chambers of Congress.
The economy ranked as the single most important issue facing the country for 39 percent of voters, followed by the state of democracy at 32 percent. Immigration was named by an additional 14 percent of respondents, according to broader figures analyzed by Newsweek.
NBC News exit poll data indicated that 57 percent of voters said the administration’s immigration enforcement actions had gone too far, while 20 to 21 percent said they had not gone far enough and 22 to 23 percent considered them about right. Sixty percent disapproved of the way Immigration and Customs Enforcement was handling its job, compared with 40 percent who approved.
These figures came from interviews conducted with voters as they left polling places.
POLL: Did You Vote Republican In The Midterms?
NBC News exit poll
Which party is better able to handle immigration?
🟥Republican Party 44%
🟦Democratic Party 40%
Neither 16% pic.twitter.com/06p1HmYvnV— Politics & Poll Tracker 📡 (@PollTracker2024) November 3, 2026
Despite the overall assessment that enforcement had gone too far, Republicans held a narrow edge when voters were asked which party was better able to handle immigration, as 44 percent chose Republicans and 41 percent chose Democrats. Voters who named immigration as their single most important issue supported Republican congressional candidates at high rates, with only 9 percent of that group expressing support for Democrat candidates.
Immigration enforcement policies were described as a crucial or major factor in the congressional vote by 73 percent of respondents. Among those for whom the issue was crucial, 58 percent backed the Republican candidate. Among the broader group that called it a crucial or major factor, roughly half supported Republicans.
Voters who said enforcement had not gone far enough backed Republicans at 91 percent, while those who said it had gone too far backed Democrats at 89 percent.
Economic concerns were more widely cited. Eighty-nine percent of voters said affordability was a crucial or major factor in their vote, and 75 percent described the state of the economy as “not so good” or “poor.” Concerns about the prices of gas, diesel, food, and groceries were also high, and majorities of those voters supported Democratic candidates.
Latino voters shifted toward Democrats relative to 2024, with about 60 to 62 percent supporting Democratic House candidates, compared with roughly 40 to 46 percent who had voted for Donald Trump two years earlier.
