Activist: More Arizona Latinos are likely to vote in 2016 than in 2012

PHOENIX — The executive director of an activist coalition said more Arizona Latinos are likely to vote in 2016 than those that cast a ballot in 2012.

“For sure, more Latinos in 2016 will vote than ever before,” Ian Danley, the executive director of One Arizona, said.

“On a percentage basis, I think, we are very, very likely to outperform 2012 levels,” he continued. “We are currently and we should continue to see that.”

One Arizona has been working for months to get people to register to vote. Earlier this year, the coalition set a goal to register 75,000 new Latino voters in time for next week’s election.

Danley said his coalition does not support one candidate or party, but may back certain issues and ballot measures. He said his group hopes to see an electorate that is much more reflective of the state’s population and believes it is on track to hit that goal.

“I think it’s going to be a good year for democracy in Arizona, whatever the outcome,” he said.

Last week, Arizona Secretary of State Michele Reagan’s office announced the latest voter registration numbers. Her office said there are 3.6 million active voters in the state.

According to the secretary of state’s office, it was the largest report-to-report increase since the 2008 general election jumped 230,989 voters at one time.

“I was thrilled to see the number of registered voters increase this much,” said Reagan. “The level of interest in this election is extremely high and it looks as if that passion has translated into people registering to vote at a high rate.”

KTAR’s Martha Maurer contributed to this report.

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