FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: lppipress@luskin.ucla.edu
New Latino Voters Data Brief Examines North Carolina’s Growing Latino Electorate
UCLA analysis shows nearly half a million Latinos are eligible to vote, including a young electorate that is reshaping the state’s political landscape
LOS ANGELES (September 17, 2026) — Approximately 473,000 Latinos are eligible to vote in North Carolina, according to a new demographic and socioeconomic data brief from the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute (LPPI).
The analysis, which draws primarily on 2024 data available through the LPPI’s Latino Data Hub, finds that Latino eligible voters are a young and growing segment of the state’s electorate. The size of North Carolina’s Latino eligible voter population has increased more than fivefold since 2000, from approximately 92,000 to 473,000 in 2024.
The brief examines Latino eligible voters across several areas, including age, language, nativity, education, housing, internet access, and transportation. Among its key findings:
- Nearly half of Latino eligible voters are bilingual in English and Spanish, while 17% primarily speak Spanish.
- Latino eligible voters are the youngest racial or ethnic group in North Carolina’s electorate, with a median age of 35, compared to 48 for all eligible voters
- One-quarter are naturalized U.S. citizens.
- More than half have attended college, and 28% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.
- Approximately 80,000, or 17%, lack access to broadband internet.
- Latino eligible voters have the state’s highest rate of living in overcrowded housing, at 8%.
- Among Latino eligible voters who rent their homes, 23% face moderate housing-cost burdens and 19% face severe housing-cost burdens.
The language findings underscore the importance of voter information and outreach that reflect how Latino communities communicate. Combined, nearly two-thirds of Latino eligible voters in North Carolina speak Spanish at home.
The North Carolina and Texas profiles build on UCLA LPPI’s 2024 examinations of Latino eligible voters in California, Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Florida, Los Angeles County, and Orange County, with a Washington state profile set for release in October. The data profiles are designed to help researchers, policymakers, advocates, and community organizations better understand the composition and experiences of the Latino electorate.
Read the full brief here.
About the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute
The UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute is a non-partisan research institute that seeks to inform, engage, and empower Latinos through innovative research and policy analysis. LPPI aims to promote equitable and inclusive policies that address the needs of the Latino community and advance social justice. latino.ucla.edu.
