Census numbers divvy up House seats

The 2020 U.S. Census data shows a slight congressional power shift toward red states but not as much as expected. The nationwide headcount, held once every 10 years, determines how many seats each state will have in the U.S. House of Representatives.

What changed? Texas will pick up two more seats. Colorado, Florida, Montana, North Carolina, and Oregon will gain one seat each. For the first time in 170 years of statehood, California will lose a congressional seat. Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia are also losing one representative each. The 2020 headcount produced the fewest changes of any Census in at least 80 years. Altogether, the U.S. population rose to more than 331 million. That’s a 7.4 percent increase—the second-slowest ever.

Dig deeper: Read Kiley Crossland’s report in Relations about declining birth rates.