Last week, I looked through the available poll data to try to find common ground among Minnesotans on the issue of immigration. Broadly speaking, what I found was disquiet with the tactics of immigration law enforcement but some ambivalence — or lack of poll data, at least — as to what tactics Minnesotans would prefer to see and what the ultimate aim of it all should be. Right on cue, KSTP/SurveyUSA released new poll findings on Friday.
In keeping with what we saw last week, they, again, found disquiet about the methods of Federal immigration law enforcement. Of Minnesota voters polled, 61% said the shooting of Renee Good was unjustified, with 27% saying it was; 65% say the shooting of Alex Pretti was not justified, while 16% say it was; 72% believe the state should be allowed to investigate the shootings independently from the federal government, with 14% opposed; 61% disapprove of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies, with 38% approving; and 64% disapprove of the tactics and strategies used by ICE and Border Patrol agents, while 35% approve.
But what do Minnesotans think that the response of state and local governments ought to be? The survey found that:
…many Minnesotans say they think local law enforcement should help enforce federal immigration law. When asked about that in our poll, 50% say yes, 36% say no, and 13% are not sure.
That is a gap of 14 percentage points. This popularity is widespread, with “Yes” the most popular answer among males and females, all ages over 35, people with kids and without, Republicans and Independents, conservatives and moderates, every level of educational attainment, every income bracket, homeowners, urban, suburban, and rural voters, and voters in all regions of Minnesota. On this aspect, this position is the common ground on immigration in Minnesota.
Last week, Rep. Harry Niska wrote for USA Today:
The chaos that unfolded in Minnesota is not the result of rhetoric alone. Equally important are sanctuary policies in Minnesota and especially Hennepin and Ramsey Counties, the two Twin City-area counties that are experiencing the highest levels of immigration enforcement and confrontations between the public and law enforcement.
These policies limit or even eliminate local cooperation with federal authorities, setting the stage for violent confrontations on our streets…
Across the country, in blue states and red states alike, federal immigration operations take place without the chaos and tragedy we have seen in Minnesota because local jurisdictions honor Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainment orders and work with federal officials to remove violent, criminal illegal aliens, typically from county jails.
In Minneapolis and St. Paul, local leaders have chosen defiance instead of cooperation, ignoring ICE detainment orders for individuals in county or city custody. These are local jails, not state prisons – an important distinction Walz too often ignores. The governor conflates ICE detainment orders, routinely honored by state prisons, with those refused by local jails because of sanctuary policies at the county and city levels.
One example is that of German Adriano Llangari. As my colleague Bill Glahn noted last September, Llangri:
…killed one and injured two in a horrific drunk driving case in Minneapolis back in August 2024. He was arrested at the crash site but released by Hennepin County, despite an outstanding ICE detainer.
State charges were finally filed in May 2025. Llangari was released, again, despite the still valid ICE detainer. He was finally picked up by the Feds and shipped back to Ecuador.
The woman killed by Llangari was 31-year-old Victoria Eileen Harwell, a name you probably don’t know.
Note that Federal authorities had to go out and locate Llangari because Hennepin County kept releasing him. This leads to the kind of flashpoints we have seen in recent weeks.
“Ending these sanctuary policies and beginning with some narrow, commonsense steps – like honoring ICE detainment orders for violent offenders already in custody – and directing local law enforcement to assist with maintaining order and de-escalating confrontations with agitators would immediately lower tensions, reduce the need for street arrests, help restore order and turn down the political temperature,” Rep. Niska writes. Minnesotans, it seems, agree. We hope that the measure brought forward last April will be brought forward again and pass. This, not the extremism of “Ice Out,” is the common ground in our state.
