Hispanic community expansion in the U.S.: Two decades of growth in more than 27 states
In 2000, only ten states had Hispanic populations exceeding 10%, but more than two decades later, that number has grown to 27, along with the District of Columbia.
Hispanic family
The Hispanic population continues to grow in the United States. The community grew by 1.5 million inhabitants from July 1, 2022 to July 1, 2023, according to the Census Bureau, also carrying with it a percentage increase of 0.4% from one year to the next (from 19.1% to 19.5%, constituting the largest minority in the country). In total, there are 65.2 million Hispanics, all of them increasingly spread out throughout the United States.
At the beginning of the 21st century, Hispanics were concentrated in a number of states that, over the years and with the increase of the registered community, have started expanding across the country to other states. In 2000, only ten states had Hispanic populations exceeding 10% of their total census: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Texas.
A decade later, seven states (Connecticut, Idaho, Kansas, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah and Washington) were added to that list. By 2023, there were 27 states made up of more than 10% of Hispanics. The following ten states were added to the list: Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Virginia, Wyoming and Hawaii - the latter was not listed in last year's data. Hispanics also account for more than 10% of the population of Washington D.C.
New Mexico leads in percentage
The state with the highest percentage of Hispanics is still New Mexico. The Hispanic community makes up almost half (49.2%) of the state's census. Proximity to the Mexican border makes it a key factor for Hispanics deciding to legally go after the American dream.
After New Mexico is Texas, which had a slight growth of 0.1% (from 39.3% to 39.4%). It is followed by California (39%), Arizona (31.5%), Nevada (28.9%), Florida (25.8%), Colorado (21.7%), New Jersey (20.4%), New York (19%) and Illinois (17.2%). In other words, in six states, at least one out of every four people are Hispanic.
And California, in numbers
California remained the state with the largest number of Hispanic census takers. In total, the Golden State has approximately 15.3 million Hispanics.
Below California is Texas (with 11.3 million Hispanics), Florida (5.5 million), New York (3.7 million), Arizona (2.2), Illinois (2.1 million), New Jersey (1.8 million), Colorado (1.2 million), New Mexico (1.1 million) and Georgia (1 million).
Nearly 1 million Hispanics on the census resided in North Carolina, Pensylvania and Washington.
In the case of Hawaii, which has a total population of 1.5 million, there are about 150,000 Hispanics legally living in the island state.
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