Global Language Solutions Blog Limited English Proficiency Voters Head to the Polls

The U.S. elections are just around the corner. In the 40+ years since Congress first amended the Voting Rights Act to ensure access to ballots for non-English speakers, the electoral process has been opened up to hundreds of thousands of voters.Immigrants to the United States come from many different language backgrounds and may be in various stages of English proficiency. Of the total immigrant population of 41.3 million in 2013, about half was Limited English Proficient (LEP). Approximately 61.6 million individuals, foreign and U.S. born, spoke a language other than English at home. While the majority of these individuals also spoke English with native fluency or very well, about 41% (25.1 million) were considered LEP.As of 2013, the highest concentrations of LEP individuals were found in the six traditional immigrant-destination states - California (6.8 million, or 27% of the total LEP population), Texas (3.4 million, 14%), New York (2.5 million, 10%), Florida (2.1 million, 8%), Illinois (1.1 million, 4%), and New Jersey (1 million, 4%). Together, the top six states accounted for approximately two-thirds of the LEP population.Spanish was the predominant language spoken by both immigrant and U.S.-born LEP individuals. About 64% (16.2 million) of the total LEP population spoke Spanish, followed by Chinese (1.6 million, or 6 percent), Vietnamese (847,000, 3%), Korean (599,000, 2%), and Tagalog (509,000, 2%). Close to 80% of the LEP population spoke one of these five languages.As non-English speakers head to the polls this week, exactly what kind of help is required? It's varies among counties, or even polling places within the same county. Find out more.Global Language Solutions, a Welocalize company, provides Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, and Tagalog professional translation and interpreting services, as well as 170 global languages. Contact us for professional translation or interpreting services.