The Obama administration, however, did take a step toward realizing its vision for immigration reform with an executive order last June that defers deportation and grants two-year work permits to undocumented students, veterans, and

young people brought to the United States at an early age.

“It’s not a permanent fix. This is a temporary, stopgap measure that lets us focus our resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and hope to talented, riven, patriotic young people,” Obama said. The policy has alleviated fears of deportation for undocumented students at Harvard, Mendoza said. Thousands of young undocumented immigrants from around the country have already submitted applications. However, Jacqueline Bhabha, Law School lecturer and University advisor on Human Rights Education, said she believes that Obama’s deferred action plan may have been less than sincere, a pandering ploy aimed at Hispanic voters who now compose a growing portion of the electorate.

Throughout his term in office, Obama has supported policy which make distinctions between undocumented immigrants with and without a criminal record. Obama backed DREAM Act legislation and ordered ICE not to deport some immigrants—both measures applicable to undocumented individuals without criminal records.

Obama has also asked enforcement officials to target undocumented workers convicted of crimes instead of conducting indiscriminate raids that separate families and punish children brought to the U.S. through no fault of their own.

Despite advocates’ high hopes for immigration reform when Obama first took office, the president has failed to enact substantial reforms, Bhabha said.

“The first four years of Obama’s term have been extremely disappointing,” she said, noting that deportations of undocumented immigrants have increased in number during the Obama administration.

THE ROMNEY PLAN

The policy shifts of the last four year may be reversed if Romney, who takes a harder stance on illegal immigration, wins the race for the Oval Office.

Though Romney does not believe most undocumented immigrants should become citizens, he has endorsed, at times, granting permanent residence to some.

“There are four million people who are waiting in line to get here legally,” he said during the second presidential debate. Individuals who illegaly immigrated as children “should have a pathway to become a permanent resident of the United States and military service, for instance, is one way they would have that kind of pathway to become a permanent resident,” Romney added.

At that same debate, Romney also said that he would instate an employment verification or “E-Verify” system, which would deny immigrants driver’s licenses and would oppose amnesty for immigrants already living in the United States.

Though Romney has not laid out a concrete plan, Romney said he wants to pursue comprehensive immigration reform at a campaign stop in Florida last summer.

Romney’s comments on illegal immigration did raise some eyebrows during a Republican primary debate in January 2012. On that night, Romney angered some Latino voters with his comments on self-deportation, calling it the best way to cope with the millions living illegally in the United States.

“The answer is self-deportation, which is people decide they can do better by going home because they can’t find work here because they don’t have legal documentation to allow them to work here,” Romney said. “We’re not going to round them up.”

Romney has also said that, if elected, he would veto any legislation modeled after the DREAM Act, standing behind Senate Republicans who succeeded in blocking the passage of the legislation two years ago. He has promised to honor any applications for deferred action made between June and November, when Romney says he will discontinue the program if elected.

“The people who have received the special visa that the president has put in place... should expect that the visa would continue to be valid,” Romney said told The Hill in early October.

The stagnant economic climate, however, has discouraged politicians from putting their political muscle behind pushing immigration reform. The presidential candidates themselves have focused on the lackluster economy and tepid job growth while on the campaign trail.

With a weak economy weighing on the minds of Americans, the future of immigration reform is, therefore, “very difficult to predict,” Bhabha said.

—Staff writer Laura K. Reston can be reached at laurareston@college.harvard.edu.