The 2010 census will confirm continued robust population growth among Hispanics, who hope to translate their status as the nation’s largest minority group into more political power.

“The Latino electorate has been consistently increasing both their total number of voters as well as their share of the electorate,” Andres Ramirez, senior vice president and director of Hispanic programs at the center-left think tank NDN, said at a briefing Tuesday in Washington.

This trend is evident across the nation, and not just in states along the U.S. border with Mexico. “As this trend continues, it will be increasingly difficult for any candidate to win either a state or a national election without the support of Latino voters,” Ramirez said.

The question is whether Hispanics can parlay their beefed-up population numbers into greater clout in Congress, where there are only 23 Hispanics in the 435-member House, or 5 percent of the total.