Number of illegal immigrants in the U.S declines
The number of illegal immigrants in the U.S declined over the past decade, a study by Robert Warren, a demographer and senior visiting fellow at the Center for Migration Studies said.
According to the study, the undocumented immigrant population dropped to 10,350,000 in 2019, a fall of 12% since 2010. Currently, almost 10.4 million unauthorized immigrants make up about 3% of the total U.S. population and a majority of them have lived in the U.S. for more than a decade.
“The undocumented population from Mexico declined so much in the past decade that its share dropped to less than half of the total population,” the study said.
“From 2010 to 2019, the undocumented population from Mexico declined by about 1.9 million, and the undocumented population from the rest of the world increased by about 500,000,” the study added.
Table 1: Undocumented Immigrant Population in the United States
| Year | Undocumented Population |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 11,725,000 |
| 2011 | 11,315,000 |
| 2012 | 11,110,000 |
| 2013 | 11,010,000 |
| 2014 | 11,045,000 |
| 2015 | 11,045,000 |
| 2016 | 10,790,000 |
| 2017 | 10,640,000 |
| 2018 | 10,565,000 |
| 2019 | 10,350,000 |
The study reveals that the decline in the number of illegal immigrants in the country is due to the policies initiated by former President Donald Trump which urged the countries like Mexico to take action against the illegal immigrants
Here are the findings made by Robert Warren in his study:
– “The undocumented population continued to decline in 2019, falling by 215,000 compared to 2018; this population has declined by 1.4 million, or 12%, since 2010.”
– “Return migration of undocumented residents to Mexico was principally responsible for the decline of almost 1.9 million in the total undocumented population from 2010 to 2019.”
– “The undocumented populations from Central America and Asia increased at the same rate from 2010 to 2016. After 2016, the population from Asia stopped growing, and the population from Central America increased by about 200,000.”
– “Since 2010, the undocumented population from Mexico has fallen from 6.6 million to 4.8 million, or by 28%.”
– “In 2019, 42 states and Washington, DC, had fewer undocumented residents from Mexico than they had in 2010. The states with increases in undocumented persons from Mexico had small undocumented populations.” Between 2010 and 2019, the number of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico declined by 35% in California, 13% in Texas, 23% in Arizona, 41% in Illinois, 37% in Georgia and 27% in Florida.
