Immigrants Comprise Nearly One-Quarter of U.S. Population

The U.S. Census Bureau recently released data on the Latino population of the United States that underscores the extent to which the immigrant experience is embedded in the social (and political) fabric of the United States in three important ways: Nearly one out of every four people in the United States in 2008 was either an immigrant or the child of an immigrant; Immigrants who are naturalized U.S. citizens (and entitled to vote) accounted for 5 percent of the total U.S. population in 2008; Two-in-five immigrants came to this country before 1990 and therefore have deep U.S. roots. More than one-third of Latino immigrants came to the United States prior to 1990.