Chicago Residents’ Views on Immigration, the Economy, Public Safety, and Pope Leo XIV
ChicagoSpeaks is the only probability-based panel built exclusively for Chicago, giving decision-makers reliable evidence on residents’ opinions and priorities.
Q2 2025
A ChicagoSpeaks® poll from NORC at the University of Chicago finds that Chicagoans’ opinions on immigration have shifted since last year. Many have positive views of Pope Leo XIV.
Chicagoans remain more likely to say the United States should reduce rather than increase the number of immigrants. However, about one-third now support reducing immigration, down from half a year ago. Similarly, support increased for a pathway to citizenship for immigrants living in the country illegally, with nearly two-thirds of residents now in favor—up from half last year.
While immigration attitudes have shifted, residents continue to express concern about a range of other issues facing the country. Immigration is low on the list of issues Chicagoans care about. While about half of Chicagoans express concern about illegal immigration, even larger majorities are worried about race relations, Social Security, environmental quality, the size and spending of the federal government, and inflation, with nearly all concerned about the economy.
The findings also reveal a majority of Chicagoans lack confidence in a wide variety of public institutions. About three-quarters of Chicagoans report they have only some or little confidence in Congress, television news, the Supreme Court, the criminal justice system, the presidency, or newspapers. Seven in 10 lack confidence in the Church or organized religion, the police, organized labor, public schools, or banks.
“In 2024, 40 percent of employed Chicagoans thought it was highly unlikely they would lose their job. Now, just 29 percent are that confident.”
Economic concerns are reflected in residents’ outlook on the job market. Pessimism about the job market is also growing. In 2024, 40 percent of employed Chicagoans thought it was highly unlikely they would lose their job. Now, just 29 percent are that confident. Roughly a quarter of employed adults in Chicago think there is a possibility of being laid off or losing their job within the next year.
Concerns about safety also remain persistent. Two-thirds of Chicagoans feel unsafe walking alone in their neighborhood at night, a share that has remained consistent in ChicagoSpeaks polls conducted since Summer 2024. Most women report feeling unsafe compared with half of men.
News about Pope Leo XIV stands apart from many of the concerns highlighted in the survey. Most Chicagoans have heard at least some or a lot about Pope Leo XIV, with 4 in 10 reporting that they have heard only a little or nothing at all. A slightly higher share of Chicagoans reports positive emotions about the new pope being from the United States compared with U.S. adults. About 4 in 10 Chicagoans report that happy, hopeful, proud, or excited describes their feelings about the pope, while about 3 in 10 U.S. adults overall feel the same.
Despite Pope Leo XIV being a White Sox fan, Chicago baseball fans—whether rooting for the White Sox or the Cubs—are more likely than those who are fans of neither team to describe themselves as happy, proud, excited, or hopeful about the pope being from the United States.
Methodology
The Chicago poll was conducted June 23–July 9, 2025 using ChicagoSpeaks®, NORC at the University of Chicago’s probability-based panel of Chicago residents. Overall, 1,111 Chicago residents completed the survey, including 533 probability cases and 578 non-probability cases. The overall margin of sampling error is +/- 4.4 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level, including the design effect. The margin of sampling error may be higher for subgroups.
NORC conducted the survey using three sample sources: (1) AmeriSpeak® panelists residing in Chicago, (2) ChicagoSpeaks panelists, and (3) Chicago residents from Dynata’s web panel. AmeriSpeak and ChicagoSpeaks are probability-based panels and Dynata is a non-probability panel. Final survey estimates were calibrated to account for the three sample sources. This research supports a scientifically rigorous, community-driven resource that informs policymakers and the public about the experiences and opinions of Chicago residents.
Interviews were conducted online in English and Spanish with Chicago residents ages 18 and older. AmeriSpeak panelists were invited through the password-protected AmeriSpeak Mobile App and received email reminders. ChicagoSpeaks panelists received a combination of email and SMS communications, while Dynata used their typical panel recruitment methods. Respondents were offered a small monetary incentive for completing the survey.
Quality assurance checks were conducted to ensure data quality. In total, 24 interviews were removed for nonresponse to at least 50 percent of the questions asked of them or for completing the survey in less than one-third the median interview time for the full sample. These interviews were excluded from the data file prior to weighting.
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About ChicagoSpeaks
Funded and operated by NORC at the University of Chicago, ChicagoSpeaks® is a probability-based panel designed to be representative of the Chicago household population.
For more information, email ChicagoSpeaks-BD@norc.org.
About NORC at the University of Chicago
NORC at the University of Chicago conducts research and analysis that decision-makers trust. As a nonpartisan research organization and a pioneer in measuring and understanding the world, we have studied almost every aspect of the human experience and every major news event for more than eight decades. Today, we partner with government, corporate, and nonprofit clients around the world to provide the objectivity and expertise necessary to inform the critical decisions facing society.
Contact: For more information, please email press@norc.org or call (877) 832-0392.
