The 2016 United States Election and Financial Support to Migrant-Serving Legal-Aid Organizations

Abstract

The 2016 US election of Donald Trump ushered in a wave of anti-immigrant rhetoric and federal policies that have been shown to harm immigrant families. This study examines how the election affected immigrant-serving community-based organizations (CBOs), which provide vital support to these communities and may mitigate harm. Focusing on migrant-legal CBOs — a key subset that offers pro-bono or low-cost legal services — and incorporating theories from organizations, social movements, and political opportunity, we assess whether these organizations were able to leverage the election as a focusing event to attract funding and whether they sustained this support over time. Using Internal Revenue Service records, we identify migrant-legal aid CBOs with a track record of delivering legal services to immigrant communities. Using synthetic control methods, we find that financial resources to migrant-legal CBOs increased from 4 to 11 percentage points during the 2016 election, and were 8 to 17 percentage points higher through 2019, the last year of available data. Our study shows that amid the shifting anti-immigrant policy climate of the Trump election, migrant-legal CBOs mobilized as a counterforce, using the socio-political landscape and public response as an opportunity to secure and sustain financial support, potentially acting as a safeguard against the escalating anti-immigrant climate.