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Immigrants in Western states most likely to benefit from Obama’s executive action

state breakdown of eligible immigrants obama executive action

At least four-in-ten unauthorized immigrants in 12 states will be eligible to benefit from the executive actions announced Thursday by President Obama, according to a new Pew Research Center analysis.

Idaho, where 46% of the state’s unauthorized immigrant population is eligible for deportation relief, tops all other states on this measure. Other states with at least four-in-ten eligible immigrants include Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

More than 5 million unauthorized immigrants are eligible for deportation relief under Obama’s executive action announced Thursday or the president’s 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which grants relief to young adults who came to the U.S. as children. The new executive action also expands the DACA program.

When we expand our analysis to those eligible under both the new executive action and those already covered the president’s DACA program, it’s clear that many Western states, including those with the highest shares of unauthorized immigrants in their total population, are affected. With both programs combined, Idaho again tops the list, with about six-in-ten (62%) unauthorized immigrants now eligible for relief, the highest share in the nation, according to the Pew Research analysis of 2012 data.

FT_14.11.21_deportationReliefMap

Though Idaho has the highest share of unauthorized immigrants affected by Obama’s immigration policies, it has a relatively small population of unauthorized immigrants. Idaho’s 50,000 unauthorized immigrant population is dwarfed by the 2.5 million in California and the 1.7 million in Texas. Both California (52%) and Texas (54%) are among the states where at least half of unauthorized immigrants are now eligible for relief. Nationwide, 48% of unauthorized immigrants are eligible for relief under new or existing programs.

The states that have high shares of unauthorized immigrants who are eligible for relief also have high shares of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico. People from Mexico account for two-thirds of unauthorized immigrants who will be eligible for deportation relief under Obama’s new executive action, according to a Pew Research analysis.

In Nevada, where President Obama traveled Friday to talk about his actions, those newly eligible for relief make up 39% of the state’s unauthorized immigrant population. The state’s total of 210,000 is relatively small compared with other states. Nevada is also one of 14 states where the unauthorized immigrant population decreased from 2009 to 2012, a trend driven largely by a drop in the number of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico.

But Nevada stands out on several measures of unauthorized immigration. Nevada has the nation’s highest share of unauthorized immigrants as a share of the state overall population (8%), the labor force (10%) and K-12 students with at least one unauthorized parent (18%).

State Unauthorized Immigrants 2012 Total Eligible for Protection Newly Eligible for Protection Percent Eligible Percent Newly Eligible
U.S., Total 11,200,000 5,350,000 3,850,000 48% 35%
California 2,450,000 1,250,000 950,000 52% 39%
Texas 1,650,000 900,000 675,000 54% 41%
Florida 925,000 375,000 210,000 41% 23%
Illinois 475,000 250,000 200,000 53% 42%
New York 750,000 300,000 200,000 39% 26%
Georgia 400,000 190,000 140,000 50% 37%
New Jersey 525,000 210,000 140,000 40% 28%
Arizona 300,000 160,000 120,000 53% 40%
North Carolina 350,000 170,000 120,000 48% 34%
Washington 230,000 110,000 85,000 47% 36%
Nevada 210,000 110,000 80,000 52% 39%
Colorado 180,000 100,000 75,000 56% 42%
Virginia 275,000 130,000 75,000 46% 27%
Maryland 250,000 110,000 60,000 43% 24%
Oregon 120,000 65,000 50,000 52% 43%
Pennsylvania 170,000 65,000 45,000 40% 28%
Michigan 120,000 55,000 40,000 46% 36%
Oklahoma 100,000 50,000 40,000 50% 39%
Tennessee 130,000 55,000 40,000 43% 31%
Utah 100,000 55,000 40,000 53% 39%
Massachusetts 150,000 60,000 35,000 38% 22%
Wisconsin 85,000 40,000 35,000 48% 40%
Connecticut 130,000 45,000 30,000 35% 24%
Indiana 85,000 40,000 30,000 47% 34%
Kansas 75,000 40,000 30,000 54% 41%
Minnesota 95,000 40,000 30,000 44% 34%
New Mexico 70,000 35,000 30,000 52% 42%
South Carolina 95,000 40,000 30,000 43% 33%
Alabama 65,000 30,000 25,000 49% 37%
Arkansas 60,000 35,000 25,000 58% 42%
Nebraska 55,000 30,000 25,000 57% 44%
Ohio 95,000 35,000 25,000 37% 27%
Idaho 50,000 30,000 20,000 62% 46%
Missouri 65,000 30,000 20,000 43% 32%
Iowa 40,000 20,000 15,000 51% 38%
Kentucky 35,000 15,000 15,000 46% 38%
Louisiana 55,000 20,000 15,000 38% 23%
Delaware 20,000 10,000 10,000 46% 37%
Rhode Island 35,000 15,000 10,000 41% 28%
Hawaii 35,000 10,000 5,000 30% 21%
Mississippi 25,000 10,000 5,000 44% 28%
Alaska 15,000 <5,000 <5,000 8% 4%
District of Columbia 20,000 5,000 <5,000 37% 17%
Maine <5,000 <5,000 <5,000 ** **
Montana <5,000 <5,000 <5,000 ** **
New Hampshire 10,000 <5,000 <5,000 34% 24%
North Dakota <5,000 <5,000 <5,000 ** **
South Dakota <5,000 <5,000 <5,000 ** **
Vermont <5,000 <5,000 <5,000 ** **
West Virginia <5,000 <5,000 <5,000 ** **
Wyoming 5,000 <5,000 <5,000 50% 40%

Note: All numbers are rounded independently and are not adjusted to sum to the total U.S. figure or other totals. Percents calculated from unrounded numbers. See Methodology for rounding rules. When ranked, states with the same numbers or shares within the column that is ranked are shown alphabetically.
** State population too small for estimate.

Source: Pew Research Center estimates based on augmented 2012 American Community Survey data from Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS)

Correction: This posting and accompanying graphics have been updated with revised estimates for most states on the share of unauthorized immigrants affected by the president’s action. A previous version of this post referred to the president’s implementation of his new immigration policy as an executive order. He has taken executive action.