The number of Latino voters is projected to increase by 26 percent to a total of 12.2 million voters in 2012, according to a report by the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund.
This translates into 8.7 percent of the country’s total voting population for the 2012 election. The NALEO report was released during the group’s annual conference held this past weekend in San Antonio.
“Latinos continue to reshape the nation’s political map, and the Latino electorate will play a decisive role in Election 2012,” Arturo Vargas, executive director of the NALEO Educational Fund, said.
The report indicates substantial growth in voter participation in the upcoming election and highlights issues that will influence the participation of Latino voters such as the economy, health care, immigration and education.
Latino voter turnout is expected to rise above 30 percent in California, Florida and Illinois in comparison to 2008. One in every five voters in California, New Mexico and Texas will be Latino, according to the report.
Between 2004 and 2008, the growing force of young Latino voters increased from 33 percent to 39 percent, which indicates that Latino youth ages 18 to 24 are expected to have a significant impact on the upcoming election.
“Both presidential candidates and political parties must actively work to engage Latino voters and address the issues they care about,” Vargas said.
Although the data shows growth in the number of Latino voters, only half of the 19.5 million eligible Latino voters cast their ballot in 2008, either because they didn’t register or because they didn’t go to the polls.
“While the Latino vote continues to increase with each Presidential election, much work needs to be done to fully engage Latinos in our country’s electoral process,” Vargas added.
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