Thread: Study Neb. Latino voting population is growing

Study: Neb. Latino voting population is growing

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -- Latinos make up an estimated 8 percent of the 1.8 million people living in Nebraska, and only about half of them are U.S. citizens of voting age, but that number is likely to rise, researchers contend in a report released Thursday.

Nebraska will have more voting-eligible Latinos in the coming years as U.S.-born Latino children reach adulthood and through naturalization, researchers at the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Office of Latino/Latin American Studies of the Great Plains say in their report.

"Latinos are becoming naturalized citizens at increasingly high rates and their children are overwhelmingly US-born," the researchers say.

The office compiled the data using estimates from the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau and data from the Census Bureau's 2205 Citizen Voting Age Population tabulation and 2009 American Community Survey.

The UNO report found that while the overall number of voting-eligible Latinos is relatively small, they represent a sizeable portion of certain legislative districts, including a district in south Omaha where about 40 percent of the 27,500 people of voting age are Latino, the researchers say.

The 2010 Census shows the number of Latinos in Nebraska surged more than 77 percent over the past 10 years.

The report comes as the Nebraska Legislature begins the process of redistricting - redrawing the boundaries of the state's federal, state and local political districts to equalize the population of those districts in accordance with U.S. Census results.

"These are important decisions where party politics often play a significant role and where minority populations' impact on future elections could be diluted if their numbers are seriously split across district boundaries," said Lourdes Gouveia, the director of the university department and co-author of the report.

A resolution being considered by the Legislature's Redistricting Committee calls for lawmakers to avoid diluting the voting strength of any minority population, among other things.

The UNO report includes only estimates of Latinos who are eligible to vote; it does not suggest how many Latinos are registered to vote.

The 2010 U.S. Census did not ask residents about their citizenship, and election officials have no way of knowing how many Latino voters are in the state, said Douglas County Election Commissioner Dave Phipps, whose district includes the state's largest city of Omaha.

"We don't keep any sort of record of that. People who register to vote aren't asked to check a box regarding their ethnicity," Phipps said.

Online:

Latino Voting Eligibility in Nebraska: http://tinyurl.com/4tftg69

http://www.krvn.com/news/index/072305cb ... 1e0dbf9160

sure there are more latino citizens. so what? are we to be afraid that one day they will all come togetehr to create an american canada?

Most of this Hispanic growth is due directly to illegal immigraton from south of our border. There are approximately 12-20 million of them here illegally and there are approximately 400,000 anchor babies born here each year. How many years has this invasion gone on? Do the math everyone. This growth didn't come about naturally.

The growth is focused on the number of the anchor babies. If we remove the citizenship from anchor babies we will see the latino vote base drop to a very small fraction of what it is now.

America needs to wake up quick before anchor baby citizenship totally changes our country. Anchor babies make up the majority of growth in elementary schools in many areas, and taxpayers support most all of them with free lunches, healthcare etc. The burden on the states is too great to allow this to continue!

Originally Posted by BillCunnane

The growth is focused on the number of the anchor babies. If we remove the citizenship from anchor babies we will see the latino vote base drop to a very small fraction of what it is now.

Exactly. Even more so put out that the 14th was never intended to give citizenship to children of illegal aliens and has been abused by a corrupt system and repeal all false citizenships if the children cannot prove at least 1 parent is a US Citizen. That would have the "latino" population the liberals are clamoring for down to likely 1-2% in a heartbeat and that 1-2% most are probably gonna vote repub as many of those legal longtime hispanic families likely appreciate shutting the door to the illegal latino invasion belittling them.

Originally Posted by hattiecat

America needs to wake up quick before anchor baby citizenship totally changes our country. Anchor babies make up the majority of growth in elementary schools in many areas, and taxpayers support most all of them with free lunches, healthcare etc. The burden on the states is too great to allow this to continue!

unfortunately, this has already happened in alot of places