Poll: Ohioans oppose benefits, privileges for illegal immigrants
11/13/2007COLUMBUS, Ohio Government health benefits, schooling and driving privileges should not be given to illegal immigrants, a majority of Ohio voters said in a poll released Tuesday.
More than eight in 10 favored tougher penalties for illegal immigrants, opposed them having driver s licenses and were against them receiving government health and welfare benefits, according to the Quinnipiac University survey.
Sixty-one percent said the children of illegal immigrants should not be allowed to attend public schools, and about the same percentage said a wall should be built between the U.S. and Mexico.
The poll questioned 1,231 Ohio voters by telephone between Nov. 6 and Sunday and has an overall margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Three-quarters of Ohioans surveyed said that legal immigrants do more to help than hurt the country, while 67 percent said immigrants in the country illegally are hurting it.
Fifty-five percent said illegal immigrants should be able to work to apply for legal status, while 38 percent said they should be deported.
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