Hispanic youth are capable of commanding a wave of change in local and national elections. But a majority of young Latinos simply aren't voting.

The U.S. Census Bureau published an analysis report, "Who Votes? Congressional Elections and the American Electorate: 1978-2014," which revealed that a critical segment of the Latino are population not voting.

Latino Turnout Has Dropped

Apparently the voting rates for everyone, except those 65 and older, dipped between 1978-2014.

"In recent congressional elections, we've seen low levels of engagement among young people and the opposite for older Americans," said Thom File, a Census Bureau sociologist and the report's author, in a news release. "These age differences cut across racial and ethnic groups as well. Regardless of whether we're looking at non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks or Hispanics, voting rates tend to increase significantly with age."

Since 1978, voting rates for non-Hispanic Blacks and Hispanics have trailed those for non-Hispanic Whites in every congressional election. The report showed that voting rates for Hispanics dropped 4.1 percent below their rates of eligibility between 1978 and 2014.

Also, 65 percent of Latinos, ages 18-24, didn't vote in 2014, and nearly the same percentage of Latinos age 25-44 (64 percent) didn't vote. The same was true of 67 percent of Latinas, ages 18-24, and 59 percent of Latinas ages 25-44.

Nevertheless, the non-voting rates have also plummeted for both Latinos and Latinas of the older set, ages 45-64. Just 52 percent of Latinos made it to the polls, and only 54 percent of Latinas voted during the last presidential election.

Young Latinos' Polling Potential Stronger Than Ever

However, the census information revealed some surprising things about young Latino voters -- who comprise a large share of eligible voters. They asserted that many young Latino voters don't understand the power of their collective vote.

Most believe their vote won't change anything and misunderstand how politics in the nation's capital can impact their lives, communities and families. This is unfortunate because politics informs everything, from social assistance to health care to immigration, to education.

Each year, 800,000 U.S.-born Hispanics turn 18 years old, and one million or more are expected to reach adulthood by 2024, proving that the eligible electorate is driven by Hispanic youth.

According to data shared by Pew Research, 33 percent of eligible Hispanic voters were between ages 18 to 29 in 2014. By comparison, just 18 percent of eligible white voters fell into that category. There's 25 percent of eligible black voters, and 21 percent of eligible Asian voters between ages 18 and 29.

The trend is expected to continue, and general Latino voting power -- or at least its potential, depending on turnout -- will also increase: By 2030, there may be as many as 40 million eligible Latino voters.

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