Massachusetts’s Hispanic population is the fifteenth-largest in the nation. More than 509,000 Hispanics reside in Massachusetts, 1% of all Hispanics in the United States. There are 246,000 eligible Hispanic voters in Massachusetts, 1% of all U.S. Hispanic eligible voters.1 This fact sheet provides key demographic information on Latino eligible voters.2 It also contains data on other major groups of eligible voters in Massachusetts, with comparative data for the U.S. Adata are from the Census Bureau’s 2006 American Community Survey.3

Hispanics in Massachusetts’s Eligible Voter Population

  • Massachusetts’s population is 8% Hispanic, the 19th highest Hispanic population share nationally. New Mexico ranks first with 45%.
  • 5% of eligible voters in Massachusetts are Latinos, the 14th largest Hispanic eligible voter population share nationally. New Mexico ranks first with 38%.
  • 48% of Latinos in Massachusetts are eligible to vote, ranking 15th nationwide in the share of the Hispanic population that is eligible to vote.

Characteristics of Eligible Voters

  • 36% of Hispanic eligible voters in Massachusetts are ages 18 to 29. Only 20% of all Massachusetts eligible voters, 31% of Latino eligible voters nationwide, and 22% of all U.S. eligible voters are in that age range.
  • 22% of Hispanic eligible voters in Massachusetts are naturalized U.S. citizens, greater than the share for all Massachusetts eligible voters (9%) and all eligible voters in the U.S. (7%).
  • 27% of Latino eligible voters in Massachusetts have not completed high school, similar to the share of all Latino eligible voters nationwide. Only 11% of all Massachusetts eligible voters and 14% of all eligible voters nationwide have not completed high school.
  • Only 34% of Massachusetts Hispanic eligible voters live in owner-occupied homes compared with 70% of all Massachusetts eligible voters. Hispanic eligible voters in Massachusetts are less than half as likely to live in an owner-occupied home as are all eligible voters in the U.S.—35% versus 71%.

Characteristics of Eligible Voters in Massachusetts, by Race and Ethnicity

  • Latino eligible voters outnumber black eligible voters in Massachusetts—246,000 versus 207,000.
  • Latino eligible voters are younger than white and black eligible voters in Massachusetts. 36% of Latinos are ages 18 to 29 compared with 18% of white eligible voters and 28% of black eligible voters.
  • Black eligible voters in Massachusetts are slightly more than likely to be naturalized citizens compared with Latino eligible voters—24% versus 22%.
  • 74% of white eligible voters in Massachusetts live in owner-occupied homes compared with 35% of Hispanic and 44% of black eligible voters.