GROWING IMMIGRANT INFLUENCE IN THE US CONGRESS

Fifteen percent of US Congressmen and Senators are immigrants or the children of immigrants, according to a Pew Research Center study. This is similar to the percentage of immigrants living in the USA. Eighteen Members of the American House of Representatives and one US Senator were born outside of the United States or one or more of their parents was foreign-born. The majority of immigrants or immigrant children serving in the US Congress have their roots in Central America (30 percent), Europe (26 percent) or The Caribbean (16 percent). Mexican heritage and Cuban heritage respectively are the most common for Members of Congress who are immigrants or who are the children of immigrants. There are also Members of Congress with recent immigrant roots in Germany, India, South Korea, Canada, Taiwan and Lithuania among other countries. The regions of the United States with the most Members of Congress with recent immigrant heritage are the West, followed by the South, the Northeast and the Midwest. To read more, click here!