Latinos in the 2014 Election: New York

This profile provides key demographic information on Latino eligible voters¹ and other major groups of eligible voters in New York.² All demographic data are based on Pew Research Center tabulations of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2012 American Community Survey.³

Hispanics in New York’s Eligible Voter Population

• The Hispanic population in New York is the fourth largest in the nation. About 3.6 million Hispanics reside in New York, 6.7% of all Hispanics in the United States.
• New York’s population is 18% Hispanic, the ninth largest Hispanic statewide population share nationally.
• There are 1.8 million Hispanic eligible voters in New York—the fourth largest Hispanic statewide eligible voter population nationally. California ranks first with 6.4 million.
• Some 13% of New York eligible voters are Hispanic, the eighth largest Hispanic statewide eligible voter share nationally. New Mexico ranks first with 40%.
• Half of Hispanics in New York are eligible to vote, ranking New York 15th nationwide in the share of the Hispanic population that is eligible to vote. By contrast, 78% of the state’s white population is eligible to vote.

Characteristics of Eligible Voters

• Age. Some three-in-ten Hispanic eligible voters in New York are ages 18 to 29, somewhat lower than the share of all Latino eligible voters nationwide (33%) in that age range. Only 22% of all New York eligible voters and of all U.S. eligible voters are ages 18 to 29.
• Citizenship and Nativity. Among Hispanic eligible voters in New York, 31% are naturalized U.S. citizens. This is higher than the 25% of Hispanic eligible voters in the U.S. Just 17% of all eligible voters in New York and 8% of eligible voters in the U.S. overall are naturalized U.S. citizens.
• Hispanic Origin. Hispanic eligible voters in New York have a different Hispanic origin profile from Hispanic eligible voters nationwide. Fully 43% of Hispanic eligible voters in New York are of Puerto Rican origin, 20% are of Dominican origin and just 7% are Mexican. By contrast, most Hispanic eligible voters in the U.S. are Mexican (59%), while 14% are Puerto Rican and 3% are of Dominican origin.
• Educational Attainment. A quarter of Latino eligible voters in New York have not completed high school, more than twice the 12% of all New York eligible voters who have not completed high school and somewhat higher than the 23% of Hispanics nationwide who have not completed high school.
• Homeownership. About one-third of Hispanic eligible voters in New York (32%) live in owner-occupied homes, lower than the 56% of all Hispanic eligible voters nationwide. Greater shares of all eligible voters in New York (60%) and eligible voters nationwide (67%) live in owner-occupied homes.

Characteristics of Eligible Voters in New York, by Race and Ethnicity

• Number of Eligible Voters. White eligible voters outnumber Hispanic eligible voters in New York by 5 to 1. In New York, Hispanics outnumber Asians by about 1 million among eligible voters. Hispanics overall outnumber blacks, but there are 94,000 fewer Hispanic eligible voters than black eligible voters.
• Age. Latino eligible voters are younger than white, black and Asian eligible voters in New York. Some 30% of Latinos are ages 18 to 29, compared with 19% of white eligible voters, 25% of black eligible voters and 24% of Asian eligible voters.
• Educational Attainment. Hispanic eligible voters have lower levels of education than do white, black and Asian eligible voters in New York. Some 25% of Hispanic eligible voters have not obtained a high school diploma, compared with 8% of white eligible voters, 16% of black eligible voters and 16% of Asian eligible voters.
• Homeownership. Hispanic eligible voters (32%) are less likely to live in owner-occupied homes in New York than are whites (70%), blacks (38%) and Asians (60%) who are eligible to vote.