---
title: "Latinos in the 2014 Election: Tennessee"
description: "This profile provides key demographic information on Latino eligible voters[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.] and other major groups of eligible voters […]"
date: "2014-10-16"
authors:
  - name: "Anna Brown"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/fact-sheet/latinos-in-the-2014-election-tennessee/"
categories:
  - "Hispanic/Latino Voters"
---

# Latinos in the 2014 Election: Tennessee

This profile provides key demographic information on Latino eligible voters[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.] and other major groups of eligible voters in Tennessee.[2. The terms “Hispanic” and “Latino” are used interchangeably. References to other races and ethnicities are to the non-Hispanic components of those populations.] All demographic data are based on Pew Research Center tabulations of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2012 American Community Survey.[3. This statistical profile of eligible voters is based on the Census Bureau's 2012 [American Community Survey](http://www.census.gov/acs/www) (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 the 2012 ACS Integrated Public Use Microdata Series ([IPUMS](http://usa.ipums.org/usa/)), 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. More information is available on [ACS sampling strategy](http://usa.ipums.org/usa/design.shtml) and [associated error](http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Downloads/data_documentation/pums/Accuracy/2012AccuracyPUMS.pdf).]

### Hispanics in Tennessee’s Eligible Voter Population

[![Population and Electorate in the United States and Tennessee, 2012](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2014/10/PH-2014-10-election-fact-sheet-TN-01.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/fact-sheets/2014-state-election-fact-sheets/latinos-in-the-2014-election-tennessee/ph-2014-10-election-fact-sheet-tn-01/)

- The Hispanic population in Tennessee is the 27th largest in the nation. About 307,000 Hispanics reside in Tennessee, 0.6% of all Hispanics in the United States.
- Tennessee’s population is 5% Hispanic, the 37th largest Hispanic statewide population share nationally.
- There are 98,000 Hispanic eligible voters in Tennessee—the 27th largest Hispanic statewide eligible voter population nationally. California ranks first with 6.4 million.
- Some 2% of Tennessee eligible voters are Hispanic, the 43rd largest Hispanic statewide eligible voter share nationally. New Mexico ranks first with 40%.
- Some 32% of Hispanics in Tennessee are eligible to vote, ranking Tennessee 46th nationwide in the share of the Hispanic population that is eligible to vote. By contrast, 79% of the state’s white population is eligible to vote.

### Characteristics of Eligible Voters

[![Characteristics of Eligible Voters in Tennessee and the United States, 2012](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2014/10/PH-2014-10-election-fact-sheet-TN-02.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/fact-sheets/2014-state-election-fact-sheets/latinos-in-the-2014-election-tennessee/ph-2014-10-election-fact-sheet-tn-02/)

- **Age.** About one-third of Hispanic eligible voters in Tennessee (34%) are ages 18 to 29, about the same as the share of all Latino eligible voters nationwide (33%) in that age range. By contrast, only 21% of all Tennessee eligible voters and 22% of all U.S. eligible voters are ages 18 to 29.
- **Citizenship and Nativity.** Among Hispanic eligible voters in Tennessee, 22% are naturalized U.S. citizens. This is less than the 25% of Hispanic eligible voters in the U.S., but just 2% of all eligible voters in Tennessee and 8% of eligible voters in the U.S. overall are naturalized U.S. citizens.
- **Hispanic Origin.** The Hispanic origins of Hispanic eligible voters in Tennessee follow a similar pattern of Hispanic eligible voters nationwide. Over half (53%) of Hispanic eligible voters in Tennessee are of Mexican origin, 19% of Puerto Rican origin and 28% claim other Hispanic origin. Among all Hispanic eligible voters nationwide, 59% are Mexican, 14% are Puerto Rican, and 27% are of some other Hispanic origin.
- **Educational Attainment.** About two-in-ten Latino eligible voters in Tennessee (17%) have not completed high school, more than the 14% of all Tennessee eligible voters who have not completed high school and lower than the 23% of Hispanics nationwide who have not completed high school.
- **Educational Attainment.** About two-in-ten Latino eligible voters in Tennessee (17%) have not completed high school, more than the 14% of all Tennessee eligible voters who have not completed high school and lower than the 23% of Hispanics nationwide who have not completed high school.

### Characteristics of Eligible Voters in Tennessee, by Race and Ethnicity

[![Characteristics of Eligible Voters in Tennessee and the United States, by Race and Ethnicity, 2012](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2014/10/PH-2014-10-election-fact-sheet-TN-03.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/fact-sheets/2014-state-election-fact-sheets/latinos-in-the-2014-election-tennessee/ph-2014-10-election-fact-sheet-tn-03/)

- **Number of Eligible Voters.** White eligible voters outnumber Hispanic eligible voters in Tennessee by 39 to 1, and black eligible voters outnumber Hispanics by 8 to 1. There are more than twice as many Hispanic eligible voters (98,000) as Asian eligible voters (41,000).
- **Age.** Latino eligible voters are younger than white, black and Asian eligible voters in Tennessee. Some 34% of Latinos are ages 18 to 29, compared with 19% of white eligible voters, 27% of black eligible voters and 22% of Asian eligible voters.
- **Educational Attainment.** Hispanic eligible voters have lower levels of high school education than do white eligible voters in Tennessee. Some 17% of Hispanic eligible voters have not obtained a high school diploma, compared with 13% of white eligible voters. Similar shares of black eligible voters (17%) and Asian eligible voters (16%) do not have a high school diploma. However, a larger share of Hispanic (19%) than black (15%) eligible voters in Tennessee have a bachelor’s degree or more. More than two-in-ten white (24%) and about four-in-ten Asian (41%) eligible voters in Tennessee have at least a bachelor’s degree.
- **Homeownership.** Hispanic eligible voters (53%) are equally likely to live in owner-occupied homes as black eligible voters (50%) in Tennessee, but are less likely to live in owner-occupied homes than white (74%) or Asian (77%) eligible voters.