A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll showed most Americans want babies born in the U.S. to automatically receive citizenship as the Supreme Court moves toward a decision on President Donald Trump‘s executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship.
The fight is also taking on a highly personal dimension for Trump, who told reporters “I’m going” as he prepares for a rare presidential appearance at the court, a plan he discussed in attend the Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship.
As per the Reuters’ report, the survey was conducted April 15-20 and found 64% of respondents opposed ending the policy, while 32% backed eliminating it.
The same poll was published as the justices head into the final stretch of a term that is expected to produce major rulings before the end of June.
Public Opinion Strongly Opposes Citizenship Change
Trumps order, signed on January 20, 2025, seeks to deny citizenship to U.S.-born children if their parents lack legal status or hold only temporary permission to be in the country.
It also sets a new requirement that at least one parent be a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident for a child born on U.S. soil to qualify for citizenship.
In court, the directive has already run into setbacks, including an October federal appeals court decision blocking it and finding it inconsistent with the Constitution and long-standing precedent.
Another appellate panel, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, signaled skepticism in August 2025, with a three-judge panel indicating the order appeared unconstitutional.
At the Supreme Court, the dispute has been framed as a defining test of Trumps immigration agenda, with the justices expected to rule by the end of June.
As reported by Reuters, the court’s April 1 oral argument suggested the conservative-majority bench may be reluctant to embrace Trump’s position.
Will Trumps Court Attendance Shift Dynamics?
Trump has argued that birthright citizenship was designed after the Civil War to protect the children of enslaved people, not to extend citizenship to children of wealthy foreigners.
He also criticized how the issue has been handled in the legal system, calling it “the craziest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Asked who he would be watching most closely, Trump described the court in partisan terms tied to which presidents appointed which justices.
“I love a few of them,” he said, adding, “I don’t like some others.”
His planned presence at oral arguments would be a modern first for a sitting president, underscoring how politically charged the case has become.
The moment also links the legal fight to Trump’s broader immigration crackdown, which has turned the citizenship question into a central campaign issue.
Legal Challenges To Trump’s Citizenship Directive
The upcoming Supreme Court review follows previous legal challenges to Trump’s directive, which instructs federal agencies not to recognize citizenship for children born in the U.S. to parents lacking legal status. A lower court had previously blocked this order, ruling it violated the 14th Amendment, a decision that has significant implications for Trump’s immigration agenda.
As the justices prepare to hear arguments, the Trump administration has argued that the Citizenship Clause’s wording excludes children of parents whose presence in the U.S. is temporary or unlawful. This pivotal case could reshape the understanding of citizenship for the first time in over a century, underscoring the political stakes as Trump prepares for his historic appearance at the court, marking the first time a sitting president has attended such proceedings in person, as detailed in Trump’s push to redefine US birthright citizenship.
Key Polls Reveal Partisan Divide On Immigration
The Reuters/Ipsos results point to sharply different views by party, even as the overall national numbers tilt strongly toward keeping birthright citizenship.
Only 9% of Democrats supported ending it, while Republicans were far more open to doing so, with 62% favoring elimination and 36% wanting it kept.
Reuters also highlighted that the court is nearing decisions on other high-profile disputes, including rules for counting mail-in ballots and cases involving transgender athletes.
Separately, the poll found 65% support counting ballots postmarked by Election Day even if they arrive later, and 67% support barring transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s school sports.
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