Latinos make up a significant percentage of the population, and over the past decade, the number of voters in this group has grown steadily. It is estimated that in the November presidential elections, around 36.2 million will be eligible to vote.
A recent report by the Pew Research Center (PWC) stated that this segment of the electorate will reach a record proportion in these elections, where Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump will face off.
The research revealed that Latino voters will represent 14.7% of all eligible voters in the national contest on November 5.
In the last election, between Trump and Joe Biden in 2020, 32.3 million people of Hispanic descent participated, and now 36.2 million are expected.
The research center also specified that of the total number of voters added to the registry between the last presidential elections and this year’s, half are Latinos. The growth of this segment of the electorate was at a rate of 1.4 million people per year.
Compared to the 2000 elections, between Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Al Gore, when 14.3 million Hispanics went to the polls, the growth was 153%, according to PWC.
At that time, they represented only 7.4% of the country’s total electorate. By 2020, that percentage had already increased to 13.6%, and now, with 14.7%, a new record is being set.
California: The State with the Largest Number of Latino Voters
The majority of Latinos who will be able to vote this November live in California. A quarter, around 8.5 million of the 33.7 million eligible Hispanic voters, lived in this West Coast state in 2022.
Following California in the ranking of states with the highest number of Latino voters are Texas, with 6.5 million; Florida, with 3.5 million; New York, with 2.2 million; and Arizona, with 1.3 million. Together, these five states concentrate about two-thirds, or 65%, of all eligible Hispanic voters.
New Mexico: The State with the Highest Proportion of Hispanic Voters
Although the states mentioned have the largest number of Latino voters, there is one state where their proportion in relation to the electorate is even greater: New Mexico.
In this southern state, 45%, nearly half, of the electorate is of Hispanic descent. In fact, it is the only place where Latino voters outnumber white, non-Latino voters.
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Similarly, in California and Texas, this segment accounts for 33% and 32% respectively, making it the second-largest proportion among major racial and ethnic groups.
Other states with a high Latino proportion are Arizona (25%), Nevada (22%), Florida (22%), Colorado (17%), and New Jersey (16%).
Less Than Half of Latinos Have the Right to Vote
The PWC report revealed that only an average of 53% of Latinos living in the country have the right to vote, while the remaining 47% are not eligible to do so.
The fact that less than half of Latinos do not have the right to vote in these elections is due to the fact that this population includes a large number of people who are too young to exercise their right or who are not U.S. citizens.
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