Why Did Immigrants Support Trump?

ABSTRACT: Why on Earth did an Ecuadorian undocumented migrant—a single mother and low-wage worker—root for Trump? Back in the summer of 2024, I chatted about the election with a woman working at the hair salon. She said she did not understand U.S. politics all that well. But she did understand that Trump was tough, and that he promised to protect people against criminal gangs. I replied that Trump's policies would put her in danger. She responded that she knew the U.S. government was no friend of hers, but she had managed to stay in the United States—so far.