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Latinos in the 2010 Elections: Connecticut

Fact Sheet

This statistical profile provides key demographic information of Latino eligible voters in Connecticut.1 It also contains data on other major groups of eligible voters in Connecticut.2 All data are based on Pew Hispanic Center tabulations of the Census Bureau’s 2008 American Community Survey.3

Hispanics in Connecticut’s Eligible Voter Population

  • The Hispanic population in Connecticut is the 17th-largest in the nation. Some 424,000 Hispanics reside in Connecticut.
  • The population in Connecticut is 12% Hispanic, the 11th-highest Hispanic population share nationally.
  • There are 202,000 eligible Hispanic voters in Connecticut—the 14th-largest Hispanic eligible-voter population nationally. California ranks first with 5.4 million.
  • More than 8% of eligible voters in Connecticut are Latinos, the 11th-largest Hispanic eligible voter population share nationally. New Mexico ranks first with 38%.
  • Nearly half (48%) of Latinos in Connecticut are eligible to vote, ranking Connecticut 14th nationwide in the share of the Hispanic population that is eligible to vote. In contrast, 77% of the state’s white population is eligible to vote.

Characteristics of Eligible Voters

  • Age. Three-in-ten of Hispanic eligible voters in Connecticut (29%) are ages 18 to 29, less than the share of all Latino eligible voters nationwide (31%) in that age range. By contrast, only 19% of all Connecticut eligible voters and 22% of all U.S. eligible voters are ages 18 to 29.
  • Citizenship. Some 16% of Hispanic eligible voters in Connecticut are naturalized U.S. citizens, compared with 8% of all Connecticut eligible voters. Hispanic eligible voters in Connecticut are more likely to be native-born citizens (84%) than are Hispanic eligible voters nationwide (74%).
  • Educational Attainment. Three-in-ten of Latino eligible voters in Connecticut (29%) have not completed high school. That was greater than the rate for all Latino eligible voters—26%—and the rate for U.S. eligible voters nationwide—13%.
  • Homeownership. Less than half of Hispanic eligible voters in Connecticut (43%) live in owner-occupied homes, compared with 60% of all Hispanic eligible voters nationwide. Somewhat greater shares of all eligible voters in Connecticut (73%) and all eligible voters nationwide (70%) live in owner-occupied homes.

Characteristics of Eligible Voters in Connecticut, by Race and Ethnicity

  • Number of Latino Eligible Voters. White eligible voters outnumber Hispanic eligible voters in Connecticut by nearly 10 to 1.
  • Age. Latino eligible voters are younger than black and white eligible voters in Connecticut. Among Latino eligible voters, 29% are ages 18 to 29 compared with 26% of black and 17% of white eligible voters.
  • Educational Attainment. Hispanic eligible voters have lower levels of education than do black and white eligible voters in Connecticut. Some 29% of Hispanic eligible voters have not obtained at least a high school diploma compared with 19% of black and 8% of white eligible voters.
  • Homeownership. Hispanic eligible voters are less likely than white eligible voters in Connecticut to live in owner-occupied homes—43% versus 79%.
  1. Eligible voters are defined as U.S. citizens ages 18 and older. Eligible voters are not the same as registered voters. To cast a vote, in all states except North Dakota, an eligible voter must first register to vote.
  2. The terms “Hispanic” and “Latino” are used interchangeably. References to “whites,” “blacks,” and “Asians” are to the non-Hispanic components of those populations.
  3. This statistical profile of eligible voters in Connecticut is based on the Census Bureau’s 2008 American Community Survey (ACS). The ACS is the largest household survey in the United States, with a sample of about 3 million addresses. The data used for this statistical profile come from 2008 ACS Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS), representing a 1% sample of the U.S. population. Like any survey, estimates from the ACS are subject to sampling error and (potentially) measurement error. Information on the ACS sampling strategy and associated error is available at http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Downloads/data_documentation/Accuracy/accuracy2008.pdf. An example of measurement error is that citizenship rates for the foreign born are estimated to be overstated in the Decennial Census and other official surveys, such as the ACS (see Jeffrey Passel. “Growing Share of Immigrants Choosing Naturalization,” Pew Hispanic Center, Washington, D.C. (March 28, 2008)).
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