Source: Pew Research Center and other internet sources
– There are an estimated 61 million Hispanic people in the United States, comprising 18.3% of the population. There are more than one million Hispanic residents in ten US states – Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Texas.
– The Latino population grew faster in the South than in any other U.S. region since 2010. It increased by 26% from 2010 to 2019, rising from 18.3 million to 23.1 million. States in the Northeast (18% increase), Midwest (18%) and West (14%) also experienced growth in the number of Latinos from 2010 to 2019. Nationally, the Latino population has grown 19% since 2010, by 9.8 million people.
– People of Mexican origin account for slightly over 60% (36.6 million) of the nation’s Hispanics. Those of Puerto Rican origin are the next largest group, at 5.6 million (another 3.2 million live on the island). Their numbers have been growing due to an increase in net migration from Puerto Rico to the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Five other Hispanic origin groups have more than 1 million people each: Salvadorans, Cubans, Dominicans, Guatemalans and Colombians.
– A record 32 million Latinos are projected to be eligible to vote in 2020, up from 27.3 million in 2016. The 2020 election will mark the first time that Hispanics will be the largest racial and ethnic minority group in the electorate, accounting for just over 13% of eligible voters.
– The share of Latinos in the U.S. who speak English proficiently is growing. In 2017, 70% of Latinos ages 5 and older spoke English proficiently, up from 59% in 2000. U.S.-born Latinos are driving this growth, as their share on this measure has grown from 81% to 90% during this time. By comparison, 36% of Latino immigrants spoke English proficiently in 2017, a percentage that increased only slightly since 1980.
– Venezuelans, Dominicans and Guatemalans saw the fastest population growth since 2010. From 2010 to 2017, 10 of the 15 largest origin groups grew faster than the Hispanic population overall, which increased 16%. The Venezuelan population in the U.S. increased 76% to 421,000 in 2017, by far the fastest growth rate among Hispanic origin groups.
– The vast majority of Latinos are U.S. citizens. About 79% of Latinos living in the country are U.S. citizens, up from 74% in 2010. This includes people born in the U.S. and its territories (including Puerto Rico), people born abroad to American parents and immigrants who have become naturalized citizens.
