Demographics of Hispanic and Latino Americans
The demographics of Hispanic and Latino Americans depict a population that is the second-largest ethnic group in the United States, 52 million people or 16.7% of the national population, of them, 47 Million are American citizens.
Demographics of the 110th United States Congress
Representation of Hispanics is somewhat complex, particularly because of the different ways to define membership in this group. Hispanics represent over 14% of the U.S. population, while the Senate is 3% Hispanic and the House is approximately 5% (25 members) Hispanic. Considering that Hispanics make up only 4% of American voters, Hispanic political incorporation has been relatively high compared with previous immigrant groups. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus  has 21 members. Joseph Marion Hernández, a Spanish American, was the first Hispanic in Congress. He was a Whig Party territorial representative for Florida in 1822. The first to represent a state was Romualdo Pacheco, who represented California in 1877. In 1929, Octaviano Ambrosio Larrazolo became the first Hispanic to be elected to the United States Senate. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Cuban American first elected in 1989, was the first Hispanic woman in Congress. While Hispanic women have served in House, none have been elected to the Senate.