ATLANTA (AP/WAOK) - The national Center for Immigration Studies says Hispanics will cast about 9 percent of the votes this November, up from 7.8 percent in 2008. The projection for Georgia is 4.4 percent.

The center’s experts predict that 53 percent of eligible Hispanics will vote. That’s less than the 66 percent turnout projected for white voters and 65 percent for African-Americans.

The report says Hispanics will cast 8 percent of votes in seven toss-up states and 2.8 percent in four states that lean slightly to one camp or the other. Georgia is a strong lean for Republican challenger Mitt Romney. President Barack Obama lost here by five percentage points in 2008.

Polls suggest that Obama leads Romney by a wide margin nationally among Hispanics, reversing GOP gains under President George W. Bush.