Latino voters are predicted to cast a record 12.2 million ballots nationwide in the 2012 presidential election, including more than 400,000 in Illinois, based on the projections of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund.
The NALEO projection of 433,000 ballots to be cast by Latinos in Illinois would represent a 37.8 percent increase from the last presidential election, potentially the largest four-year increase among the states.
Those ballots would bring the Latino share of the vote in Illinois up to 7.6 percent, the group said, though that’s still below the anticipated national level of 8.7 percent of the country’s voters.
By contrast, in California, New Mexico and Texas, at least one in five voters will be Latino, with 35 percent of the New Mexico vote coming from Hispanics.
“While the Latino vote continues to increase with each presidential election, much work needs to be done to fully engage Latinos in our country’s electoral process,” Arturo Vargas, the group’s executive director, said in a statement.
“In 2008, 19.5 million Latinos were eligible to vote, but half did not cast ballots, because they were not registered or did not turn out.The Latino electorate must make faster progress if America’s democracy is to thrive,” he said.
![Four years into cannabis legalization in Illinois, celebrations of the April 20 informal weed holiday known as 420 are getting bigger and more widespread. Named for the time of day a group of friends met to get high, 420 has become a chance for marijuana users to publicly share a previously illegal drug and the counter-cultural atmosphere surrounding it. The main event in downtown Chicago likely will be the second annual 420 Sesh Fest, at Green Rose Dispensary. The party will include live music, a magic show, carnival games, food trucks, pop ups, and product discounts. It also will feature Grammy-nominated […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/ctc-l-Illinois-marijuana_175925141.jpg?w=546 "Four years into cannabis legalization in Illinois, celebrations of the April 20 informal weed holiday known as 420 are getting bigger and more widespread. Named for the time of day a group of friends met to get high, 420 has become a chance for marijuana users to publicly share a previously illegal drug and the counter-cultural atmosphere surrounding it. The main event in downtown Chicago likely will be the second annual 420 Sesh Fest, at Green Rose Dispensary. The party will include live music, a magic show, carnival games, food trucks, pop ups, and product discounts. It also will feature Grammy-nominated […]")
