PHILADEPHIA /PRNewswire/ -- The historic numbers of Latinx voters that turned out for early voting in Arizona this election cycle underscores the significant role the Latinx vote, and specifically, the Latinx youth vote played in delivering an astonishing 6.9% net gain for Biden in the state.
Of the nearly 325,000 in Arizona's Latinx early voters, over 25% were in the 18 to 29 youth age group, making it the largest block of Latinx voters in the state. With 86% of the results in, nearly 78,000 Latinx youth votes have been counted; nearly double the entire 41,000 casts in Arizona in 2016.
Voto Latino has played a major role in registering and mobilizing these Latinx youth voters to the polls in Arizona. These are voters with a historically low propensity to vote. In fact, 36.5% of all 2020 Latinx early voters did not even vote in 2016. This year, through a targeted and disciplined campaign, Voto Latino heavily invested its $33.7 million war chest in the most important battleground states of this election. In Arizona, a state that has suppressed Latinx communities for decades and has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1996, Voto Latino registered 67,110 voters and mobilized nearly 400,000 to help secure a Biden victory. Since 2012, Voto Latino has registered 1,120,784 people and 601,330 voters in the 2020 election cycle alone.
Latinx voters vary state-to-state because of the intricacies of ethnicity, gender, age, education, and other variables. Understanding that, Voto Latino noticed a correlation between age and political beliefs. In Arizona, age plays a large role in understanding voters within the Latinx electorate. Young Latinx voters provide a larger Democratic vote share than middle-aged and older Latinx voters. Arizona also had the potential to have the largest young Latinx voter turnout in history, and by all indications, it happened. Young Latinx voters voted at higher rates, outpacing their older counterparts both on early voting and election day. Voto Latino programming focused on registering and mobilizing young, low-propensity Latinx voters to the polls this election cycle -- and it worked!
As we await the national results, amid tabulation delays due to COVID-19, Voto Latino is encouraging all sides to remain calm and await officially certified results. Any premature declaration of victory should be viewed and scrutinized as an attempt to usurp the will of the voters. For the good of the country, every eligible voter must be counted and great care must be taken to ensure that the certified result matches the preference of the American people.
Voto Latino is a grassroots political organization focused on educating and empowering a new generation of Latinx voters, as well as creating a more robust and inclusive democracy. Through innovative digital campaigns, culturally relevant programs, and authentic voices, we shepherd the Latinx community towards the full realization of its political power.
