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Latinos make up half of the growth in new eligible voters

Almost 15% of Americans eligible to vote in November are Hispanic, a new high, and they're the second fastest-growing ethnic or racial voter group.
Election worker Ramona Ortiz places a sign outside a polling station
Election worker Ramona Ortiz places a sign outside a polling station at Fire Station 3 on E. Rio Grande Ave in El Paso, Texas, just before polls open on Nov. 8, 2022.LM Otero / AP file

Latinos account for half of the growth in new eligible voters since the last presidential election cycle in 2020, according to a new report by the Pew Research Center.

There are now 36.2 million eligible Hispanic voters in 2024, up from 32.3 million in 2020. Latinos are now almost 15% of the nation's eligible electorate.

A narrow majority of all U.S. Latinos in 2022 were eligible to vote (53%), but ahead of these elections there are big variations within the different states. In New Mexico, 66% of Hispanics can vote, compared to states like Tennessee, where it's 36%, and Maryland 39%.

In fact, almost two-thirds of the nation's eligible Latino voters live in only five states: California, Texas, Florida, New York and Arizona.

Eligible Latino voters are also younger than other groups: While 48% of all eligible voters are over 50, the figure is only 33% for Hispanics.

Despite the group’s relative youth compared to other voter blocs, and although 19% of Latinos are not U.S. citizens, about 1.4 million Hispanics become eligible to vote every year.

“Latinos continue to be a large and fast-growing part of the U.S. electorate," Pew Research senior writer and editor Jens Manuel Krogstad told NBC News. "They reflect the Latino population overall in the sense that a substantial number of young adults and immigrants will be eligible to vote this year.”