In the election battleground states, 60 percent of Latinos polled said they are “very enthusiastic” about voting in the presidential election. Typically in a presidential election about a third of Latinos registered to vote actually do.
More than half of registered Latinos polled said they know an undocumented immigrant -- either someone in their family or a close friend. About a third said they know someone who was questioned by police, detained or deported.
Matt Barreto is a founder of Latino Decisions, which conducted the recent poll.
"This is an extremely personal issue that Latinos are facing on this immigration debate that is unfolding," Barreto said.
Stephen Nuño is a political science professor at Northern Arizona University and tracks Latino Decisions polls.
"They're perhaps the best polling outfit researching Latino behavior in the country," Nuno said. "I would pay attention to what they have to say," Nuno said.
The researchers polled 2,000 registered Latinos in the five battleground states -- 400 in each Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Nevada and Virginia. The poll was conducted June 12-21.
