President Trump’s aim to make immigration a central focus of the midtermsis succeeding—at least, when it comes to Google searches.
In late September, immigration was only within the top 10 or 20 political Google searches across congressional districts—and perhaps surprisingly, it ranked higher in districts that supported Hillary Clinton in 2016, according to data compiled by The Washington Post. That all changed within the past month. By the end of October, immigration was consistently among the five most-searched political topics, with only a few exceptions.
But there’s one subject area that has consistently drawn more interest across the board than immigration: healthcare. And Republicans appear to be catching on, vowing to save a part of Obamacare that mandates coverage for those with pre-existing conditions.
The Post reports that healthcare has been the most-searched political subject across congressional districts for weeks, which should come as no surprise as it’s ranked as a top issue for voters in the midterms. Nevertheless, immigration has certainly gained steam. In fact, in 39 districts that are contested races, immigration has surpassed healthcare as the most-searched topic.
Trump has repeatedly invoked the migrant caravan as a reason to close borders to asylum-seekers and is sending military forces to the border. He has called for the end of birthright citizenship and has continued to build tent cities for migrants.