Immigrants in South Carolina

 

Immigrants, Latinos, and Asians account for large and growing shares of

the economy and population in the state of South Carolina. Immigrants
(the foreign-born) make up 4.8% of the state’s population and over
one-third of immigrants in South Carolina are naturalized U.S. citizens
who are eligible to vote. “New Americans”—immigrants and the children of
immigrants—account for 4.5% of all registered voters in the state.
Latinos and Asians (both foreign-born and native-born) wield $8 billion
in consumer purchasing power. At last count, businesses owned by Latinos
and Asians had sales and receipts of $4.6 billion and employed more than
29,000 people. At a time when the economy is still recovering, South
Carolina can ill-afford to alienate such a critical component of its labor
force, tax base, and business community