This story was produced through a collaboration between WFAE and La Noticia. You can read it in Spanish at La Noticia. Puedes leer la nota en español en La Noticia.
Newly naturalized U.S. citizens could play an important role in swing states during the midterm elections. A new study found North Carolina among the top states where this voter bloc could have a political impact.
An estimated 5.2 million potential new voters were naturalized nationwide since 2016, according to a study by the National Partnership for New Americans.
This multicultural, multiethnic group has the potential to sway the midterm elections, the study says. In North Carolina, an estimated 94,000 potential new voters became U.S. citizens.
That’s 20,000 more voters than former President Donald Trump won the state by in 2020 and just 1,000 less than Sen. Thom Tillis won by in the same election.
The question is whether these new American citizens will come out to vote. The study found voter turnout among naturalized citizens to be about 9% lower than turnout by native-born voters over the past 20 years.
