WASHINGTON — House Republicans passed legislation Wednesday to add a citizenship question to the census and exclude noncitizens from the official population count when determining the population for congressional representation and electoral votes.
The legislation passed 206-202 voting along party lines, is part of a trend of House GOP bills related to immigration as the November election approaches. Republicans and their presumptive presidential nominee, Donald J. Trump, have focused their campaigns on immigration.
The Trump administration tried to add a citizenship question on the 2020 census, but… The Supreme Court blocked it.
“We should not reward states and cities that violate federal immigration laws and maintain asylum policies with increased representation in Congress,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement after the bill passed. “Common sense dictates that only American citizens are considered when apportioning votes in elections.”
Bill, H.R. 7109, sponsored by GOP Rep. Chuck Edwards, would impact the 2030 census and beyond if passed.
The general census, which takes place every 10 years, helps in this define congressional seats in the House of Representatives and can determine political power.
From the first census in 1790 citizens and non-citizens were included in the official U.S. population count because of the 14th Amendment’s requirement to include “the whole number of persons in each state.”
During debate on the bill, Edwards argued that the Constitution did not specify that noncitizens should be counted in the census.
He argued that the word “persons” used in the 14th Amendment “has no definition.”
It is unlikely to pass the Senate, where Democrats control a slim majority and the White House has already nominated it a statement opposing the bill.
The White House said the bill “prevents the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau from carrying out its constitutional obligation to count the number of people in the United States in the decennial census” and “makes it more difficult to obtain accurate data.”
“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that the census is as accurate and free from political interference as possible, and upholding the long-standing principle of equal representation enshrined in our Constitution, census statutes and historical tradition,” the White House said.
Numbers in Dem areas, GOP says
During the House debate, Republicans argued that areas with vast immigrant populations deprive U.S. citizens of congressional representation and benefit Democratic-led states.
“It’s absolutely outrageous,” said Republican Garret Graves of Louisiana. “It’s 100% about accumulating votes.”
Tennessee Republican Tim Burchett said states with more foreigners “will get more congressional districts and more electoral votes.” He said those votes would also benefit Democrats and “tilt things in their favor.”
Democrats warn of Latino undercount
Democrats argued that the bill would not only violate the Constitution, but would also harm immigrant communities by undercounting and could threaten the accuracy of the census.
“The census is essential to democracy,” said Jamie Raskin, a Democrat from Maryland. “This bill would destroy the accuracy of the census, which may have something to do with its real motivations.”
Raskin added that the bill would not only eliminate all foreign nationals, including lasting residents with green cards, “who are on the path to citizenship.”
Raskin said the GOP’s decision to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census created a chilling effect and undercounted communities of color, especially Latinos.
Six states – Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas – had fewer people 2020 census than were estimated to live there.
Nationwide, the 2020 Census had a record undercount of Latinos of about 3 million. according to the Pew Research Center.
According to Pew, eight states – Delaware, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island and Utah – have seen limits exceeded.
The chairwoman of the Congressional Latino Caucus, Republican Nanette Diaz Barragán of California, said the bill would have a chilling effect on census accuracy and would harm immigrant communities.
“This is a bill that threatens the fair and equal representation of immigrant communities,” she said.
