POLITICAL POWER
Though they composed nearly 15 percent
of the population in 2006, Hispanic
Americans have historically been under-
represented in Congress and as a share of
the electorate. As of 2001, there were only
23 Hispanic members (less than 5 percent)
in the House of Representatives and no
Hispanic senators. By 2008, there was a
modest increase, with 25 Hispanic mem-
bers in the house and 3 Hispanic senators.
These still low numbers correlate closely
with the number of Hispanic voters who
go to the polls. In the 2000 election, for
example, only 32 percent of eligible
Hispanics voted.
Analysts point to several factors that
have kept Hispanic voter participation
down. Poverty and lack of education, or
lack of English, probably affect Hispanic
voting patterns. Also, many Hispanics are
not yet U.S. citizens, and thus are not eli-
gible to vote. Yet another factor that im-
pacts the number of Hispanics in Congress
is geography—the fact that much of the
country’s Hispanic population is heavily
concentrated in a few states translates into
fewer seats for Hispanic politicians.
Where Hispanics do represent a siz-
able portion of the electorate, they form
a powerful—and powerfully courted—
voting bloc. Many of the states with large
Latino populations—California, Texas,
Illinois, and Florida, for example—are
key battleground states in any presidential
election. For this reason, many politicians
have gone to great lengths to win the
favor of local Hispanic communities.
Although Hispanics do not vote as a
bloc and there are Democratic and
Republican voters in every Latino nation-
ality group, the Cuban community in
Florida has generally voted Republican
while most other Hispanic Americans
have traditionally leaned Democratic. In
1996, more than 70 percent of Hispanics
voted for President Clinton. In 2008,
Hispanic voters continued to express their
loyalty to Clinton by strongly favoring
New York Senator (and former first lady)
Hillary Clinton over her Democratic
challengers in the primaries. But Latinos
do not vote strictly along party lines, and
both parties often eagerly seek them as a
key swing vote. The Republican Party
receives more money in campaign contri-
butions from Hispanic Americans thanHISPANIC AMERICA TODAY 229CaliforniaNorth CarolinaEducational Attainment of Hispanic Americans Versus Non-Hispanic Whites, 2006