Young Latinos make up a large portion of the nation's second-fastest growing minority group, representing a sizeable demographic that could add significant gains to the Latino-supported Democratic Party.

However, a large number of young Latino Americans are undocumented, which disenfranchises many would-be voters from the political process.

Despite forming close community ties and going to school in the U.S., they are precluded from voting and often prevented from accessing affordable higher education.

The Latino community, which is the nation's largest minority, is expected to cast 8 million votes in November's midterm elections, according to projections by the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO).

Al Jazeera America reports that 28 million Latinos will be eligible to vote in the 2016 presidential election, up from the current 25 million. And while young Latinos vote at lower rates than older Latinos, many are civically engaged, and could become a driving force in American politics.

But many young Latinos who came to the United States as children, often referred to as "DREAMers," remain undocumented.

Under the DREAM Act, which has yet to pass, certain immigrants who have arrived in the U.S. as minors, graduated from U.S. high schools and have lived in the country continuously would be eligible for permanent residency. Fifteen states have adopted their own versions of the act, most of which allow undocumented young immigrants to have access to financial aid while attending state universities.

The DREAM Act faces fierce political opposition from Republicans in Congress who believe that the act is tantamount to offering amnesty and rewarding illegal immigration.

Despite the gains made for undocumented youth, many states do not offer the DREAM Act. And while many are eligible for the Obama administration's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, half a million have yet to apply. DACA allows young people who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children -- most of whom are Latino -- to avoid deportation and obtain a work permit for two years.

According to NPR, hundreds of thousands of young Latinos applied for the DACA program after it was announced in 2012. Now, most have stopped applying due to misinformation.

Adam Luna, an activist with the immigrant-rights group Own the Dream, said that the biggest challenge is identifying applicants for the program and dispelling misinformation.

"People who didn't go to college think that they don't qualify. People who are young, and young parents of 14- [and] 15-year-olds don't realize that people that young can apply," Luna said.

The Migration Policy Institute finds that 1.1 million people are eligible for DACA, with the largest group born in Mexico. Mexicans and other Latin Americans comprise the biggest percentage of people who have applied for the program.

Besides misinformation, another major obstacle to applying for DACA is the fee; applicants need to pay $465 for the application free, which can be a hefty price to pay per individual for many immigrant families.

Many also fail to apply out of fear, as the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency continues to deport undocumented immigrants in large numbers. Immigrant advocates are displeased with the Obama administration, as the administration has deported immigrants at a higher rate than the George W. Bush administration.

While they still cannot vote, undocumented young Latinos who are approved under DACA can stay in the country and be politically active.

About 35 percent of DREAMers polled said they are part of an immigrant rights group, actively working to push for comprehensive immigration reform. One in four surveyed in the 2012 American National Election Study say they have attended a political rally or demonstration, and nearly half surveyed say they participated in voter mobilization efforts prior to the 2012 election.

The Wall Street Journal reports that young Latinos in swing states like Colorado, Florida and Ohio went door-to-door and canvassed on college campuses to register voters in 2012.

Astrid Silva, a Las Vegas college student brought to the country illegally from Mexico when she four, volunteered at a phone bank in 2012. "We don't tell people who to vote for," she said. "But we make it clear that immigration matters to our community."

Many undocumented young Latinos are currently fighting for Congress to pass the comprehensive immigration reform bill, which was passed by the Senate last June.

The bill, which tightens border security while providing a pathway to citizenship for the country's estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants, has not yet been taken up by the House. Republicans have been intransigent, with the majority of House GOP members opposing immigration reform despite the importance of Latino voters in the upcoming midterm and presidential elections.

While Latinos are overwhelmingly Democrats, four in 10 young, undocumented Latinos said they will not support Democrats in upcoming elections if immigration reform is not passed. Sixty-eight percent also said they will not support Republicans if immigration reform continues to languish in Congress.

Latinos could affect the outcome of 44 Republican-held House seats, and are expected to decide the outcome of 14 GOP-held House seats in Florida, New York, Colorado, California, North Carolina, Indiana, Texas and Nevada.

While 70 percent of young Latinos have a right to vote because they were born in the U.S., the other 30 percent can do nothing but advocate for change until Congress gives undocumented immigrants the chance to become American citizens.