Early voting numbers in Mecklenburg County show Hispanic voters account for just about 3% of total turnout in this year’s primary. Still, participation has reached record levels.
A total of 1,564 Hispanic voters cast ballots during early voting — up from 952 in 2024 and 577 in 2022.
Hispanic voter registration in the county also grew to 53,366, the highest on record.
“When it comes to primaries, usually Hispanic participation is pretty low,” said Lennin Caro of the Camino Research Institute. “But this is a much bigger number than 2024, and it’s blowing 2022 out of the water.”
Caro attributed the increase to high-profile local races and a rise in young Hispanic voter participation.
Early voting among Hispanic voters ages 18 to 25 more than quadrupled compared with the last midterm primary. In 2022, just 62 Hispanic voters in that age group cast early ballots; in 2026, 258 did.
Even though Hispanic voters made up a small share of ballots cast in the 2026 primary, Caro said the upward trend sends a message.
“Hispanics are eating up more of that proportional pie,” he said. “Some of these elections are decided within that margin.”
