Minnesota Immigration Ratings

Hispanic Population

208,000

% of State Population

Undocumented Residents

110,000

View Ratings Information

Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians account for large and growing shares of the economy and population in Minnesota. Immigrants make up 6.6% of the state’s population, and 42.5% of them are naturalized U.S. citizens who are eligible to vote. “New Americans”—immigrants and the children of immigrants—account for 3.5% of all registered voters in the state.

Immigrants are not only integral to the state’s economy as workers, but also account for tens of million of dollars in tax revenue and consumer purchasing power. Moreover, Latinos and Asians wield nearly $10 billion in consumer purchasing power, and the businesses they own had sales and receipts of $2.2 billion and employed more than 21,000 people at last count

U.S. Senatorial Voting Record:
Immigration Legislation Immigration Reform

Senator Klobuchar (D)

Senator Franken (D)

	HS News Grading
Votes	Klobuchar	Franken
Overall State Grade:

The Immigration Policy Center (IPC) is the research and policy arm of the American Immigration Council. IPC's mission is to shape a rational conversation on immigration and immigrant integration. Through its research and analysis, IPC provides policymakers, the media, and the general public with accurate information about the role of immigrants and immigration policy on U.S. society. IPC reports and materials are widely disseminated and relied upon by press and policy makers. IPC staff regularly serves as experts to leaders on Capitol Hill, opinion-makers and the media. IPC, formed in 2003 is a non-partisan organization that neither supports nor opposes any political party or candidate for office.

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State Facts

Immigrants and their children are growing shares of Minnesota’s population and electorate.

The foreign-born share of Minnesota’s population rose from 2.6% in 1990, to 5.3% in 2000, to 6.6% in 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Minnesota was home to 345,001 immigrants in 2007, which is nearly the population of St. Louis, Missouri.
42.5% of immigrants (or 146,595 people) in Minnesota were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2007—meaning that they are eligible to vote.
3.5% (or 100,171) of registered voters in Minnesota were “New Americans”—naturalized citizens or the U.S.-born children of immigrants who were raised during the current era of immigration from Latin America and Asia which began in 1965—according to an analysis of 2006 Census Bureau data by Rob Paral & Associates.

Roughly 1 in 14 Minnesotans are Latino.

The Latino share of Minnesota’s population grew from 1.2% in 1990, to 2.9% in 2000, to 3.9% (or 202,707 people) in 2007. The Asian share of the population grew from 1.8% in 1990, to 2.9% in 2000, to 3.5% (or 181,917 people) in 2007, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Latino and Asian entrepreneurs and consumers add billions of dollars and tens-of-thousands of jobs to Minnesota’s economy.

The 2008 purchasing power of Minnesota’s Asians totaled $5.3 billion—an increase of 581.8% since 1990. Latino buying power totaled $4.4 billion—an increase of 768.4% since 1990, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia.
Minnesota’s 7,700 Asian-owned businesses had sales and receipts of $1.8 billion and employed 16,887 people in 2002, the last year for which data is available. The state’s 3,984 Latino-owned businesses had sales and receipts of $463 million and employed 4,596 people in 2002, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners.

Minnesota’s diverse immigrant population adds tens of millions of dollars to the state’s economy.

In the Twin Cities metro area, 138 immigrant-owned businesses created 386 new jobs and spent $5.6 million on payroll, rent, and supplies in 2002, according to a study from the University of Minnesota.
␣ More than 1,000 Mexican-American businesses operated in Minnesota, generating an estimated $200 million in sales; while Latino workers employed in south-central agricultural industries added nearly $25 million to the local economy, according to a 2004 report by the Minneapolis Foundation.

Immigrants are integral to Minnesota’s economy as workers.

Immigrants comprised 7.6% of the state’s workforce in 2007 (or 219,527 workers), according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Unauthorized immigrants comprised 2.3% of the state’s workforce (or 70,000 workers) in 2008, according to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center.
If all unauthorized immigrants were removed from Minnesota, the state would lose $4.4 billion in expenditures, $2.0 billion in economic output, and approximately 24,299 jobs, even accounting for adequate market adjustment time, according to a report by the Perryman Group.

Naturalized Citizens Excel Educationally.

In Minnesota, 31.8% of foreign-born persons who were naturalized U.S. citizens in 2007 had a bachelor’s or higher degree. At the same time, only 20.4% of naturalized citizens lacked a high- school diploma, compared to 33.2% of noncitizens.
The number of immigrants in Minnesota with a college degree increased by 62.6% between 2000 and 2007, according to data from the Migration Policy Institute.
32.6% of Minnesota’s foreign-born population age 25 and older had a bachelor’s or higher degree in 2007, compared to 30.8% of native-born persons age 25 and older.
In Minnesota, 70.4% of all children between the ages of 5 and 17 in families that spoke a language other than English at home also spoke English “very well” as of 2007.