On April 26, 2021, the U.S. Census Bureau announced the results of the 2020 Decennial Census. The Census, which is Constitutionally mandated, determines “Apportionment,” or the number of representatives each state will have until the next Census in 2030.

The states of California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia each lost a seat. Texas picked up two seats, and Colorado, Florida, Montana, North Carolina, and Oregon each gained one seat. Many expected a different result. Texas was expecting to pick up three, while Florida was supposed to gain two, and Arizona one. Alabama, Minnesota, and Rhode Island were each expected to lose a seat. Others were expecting the population shift within that same number of seats to be different as well. These expectations were based on estimates, but the final numbers were significantly off from projections.

In the end, the Census added 2.5 million persons to blue states above the December population estimate. Many state estimates were entire percentage points off from the Decennial Census, which is an unusual margin of error. Estimates can be wrong, of course, but a peek under the hood raises important questions about the probity of the 2020 Census…”