Hispanic voters won't be a major force this election. Here's why

The number of Hispanics who are eligible to vote reached a record high this year — 25 million. That’s more than double the amount two decades ago.

Yet they’re unlikely to play a pivotal role in midterm elections this November, as they did in 2012 when they helped send President Obama back to the White House.

Of all those eligible Hispanic voters, few live in areas with competitive elections this year, according to a comprehensive analysis released Thursday by the Pew Research Center.

Latinos could play an influential role in deciding the victor in the contest for a Senate seat in Colorado, since they make up 14.2 percent of eligible voters. But they will likely have a less forceful impact in other Senate races.

Aside from zip code, there is another big reason Hispanics aren’t likely to tip this election.

They don’t typically vote in midterms. Less than a third of eligible Hispanic voters — 31.2 percent — turned out to vote in 2010, according to Pew. That lags well behind other demographic groups.

Ted Hesson was formerly the immigration editor at Fusion, covering the issue from Washington, D.C. He also writes about drug laws and (occasionally) baseball. On the side: guitars, urban biking, and fiction.