Research for New Book Finds Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian Migrants Harmed Ohio Community
The Trump administration officially ended the extension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians, reversing a Biden Era policy extending the status until August, 2026. The New York Times reports the White House is preparing to dramatically increase deportation flights to Haiti, likely to accelerate the removal of thousands of Haitians who lost legal protections.
A recent survey conducted by BIG DATA POLL finds the residents of Clark County, Ohio and the Greater Springfield area not only support President Donald Trump’s decision overwhelmingly, but the research also conclusively demonstrates the residents believe the program has had a decidedly negative impact on the community. The survey was conducted for the new book, Haitians of Springfield: An Oral History.
When asked whether they “approve or disapprove of the influx of Haitian immigrants into the county”, slightly more than a supermajority disapproved, including 55.6% who “strongly disapprove” and another 11.8% who somewhat disapprove. That’s just over the percentage of voters countywide who supported the president in 2024. He defeated Kamala Harris easily in Clark County, 64.3% to 34.8%. Less than 3 in 10 (28.9%) approve, including just 15.7% who “strongly approve”.
“The heritage American citizens of Springfield, Ohio, are vindicated. When tens of thousands of unvetted Haitian migrants appeared in this Rust Belt city, mainstream media reported the locals’ complaints amid the chaos were all merely racist rumors,” said, Joshua Lisec, the author of the book from Regnery Publishing that lands on shelves on October 6th, 2026. “Springfield adores their Haitian neighbors, we were told. But now, the first professional poll on the matter shows an overwhelming majority of registered voters want these foreign troublemakers gone.”
“Pet owners are relieved!”
BIG DATA POLL further asked registered voter residents which policy they preferred to pursue regarding the Haitian migrant community with TPS status before the president’s decision. Removal of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and deportation was preferred by 61.9%, followed by a pathway to naturalization garnering 28.3% and amnesty and residency with just 9.8%.
When asked if they supported each of the three policies, removal of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and deportation scored the highest approval at 57.%, including an outright majority (52.4%) who “strongly approve” of it. By contrast, a majority (50.1%) “strongly disapprove” of amnesty and residency, while 56.8% combined disapprove. Even a majority (52.6%) combined disapprove of a pathway to citizenship.
“The Buckeye State to include Clark County was Trump County back in November 2024,” BIG DATA POLL Director Rich Baris, said in a statement. “Corporate media and the pundit class might be outraged over the president’s decision, but the voters who elected him are most definitely not.”
In order to determine why registered voter residents of Springfield, Ohio and the Greater Clark County area supported or opposed the policy opening the door to Haitian migrants, BIG DATA POLL asked about their personal experiences with members of the Haitian migrant community, and whether they believed the influx of Haitian migrants has had a positive or negative impact on the community overall.
These results, too, were conclusive.
Fifty-four percent (53.5%) reported having negative experiences with the Haitian migrant community, including about 1 in 4 (23.2%) who reported those personal experiences to be “very negative”. If treated as a sentiment score, the result is clearly negative at -28.03. When asked about the overall impact to the community as a result of the influx, a supermajority (65.5%) reported a negative impact, including over one-third (34.2%) who reported a “very negative” impact, posting a -43.05 sentiment score.
This decisively negative outlook is at least in part the result of the impact on recent movers, specifically one-time residents who have decided to leave Springfield and the Greater Clark County area as a result of the influx of Haitian migrants. A combined 4 in 10 (39.7%) reported knowing family, friends or both who have moved as a result of the influx of Haitian immigrants into Clark County and/or the City of Springfield. That included 5.0% who knew family, 17.2% who knew friends, and 17.5% who knew both.
The survey even went so far as to ask how many family, friends or both each resident knew to be recent movers as a result of the policy. The minimum cited came in at just one (1) and the maximum 25, with the mean countywide coming in at 7.02. Of note, the residents of Springfield reported more recent movers with a higher mean of 7.22 and max of 25 juxtaposed to 18 outside of the city, lending credibility to the reported numbers given migrant locations.
“This was one of the most difficult studies I’ve ever had to conduct because these voters clearly have had their communities turned upside down as a result of a policy to which they never consented,” Director Baris added. “They overwhelmingly backed the president to undo the harm they believe this policy has caused, and media should respect it.”
“That’s called ‘self-governance’.”
Methodology
BIG DATA POLL interviewed 446 registered voter residents of the City of Springfield and Greater Clark County area from April 18 to April 21, 2026. Results were weighted for sex, age, race, region and geography. Interviews conducted online were sourced through Lucid (CINT) and live-agent phone interviews including P2P SMS and text-to-online are sourced from the L2 National Voter File Database. Participants who opted for text-to-online were given 24 hours to complete the interview. Interview details plotted on maps can be reviewed by hovering and clicking on the locator pins. Results were weighted for sex, age, race and ethnicity, education, and geography. The overall sampling error is ±4.0% at a 95% confidence level. It is important to note that sampling errors for subgroups are higher. The survey was sponsored by Entrepreneur’s Wordsmith LLC DBA LisecGhostwriting.com for Haitians of Springfield: An Oral History by Joshua Lisec from Regnery Publishing released on October 6th, 2026.
