(JustPatriots.com)- The Census Bureau claims that 14 states’ populations were drastically undercounted in the 2020 census. The error helped Democrats and cost Republicans seats in the House. The figures had already been used to distribute House seats for the next ten years.
The population of Florida was drastically undercounted in 2020, according to a recent analysis from the United States Census Bureau. Florida was given an additional seat. Should there have been two? Florida’s population was underestimated by well over 700,000 people, costing the state a seat in Congress for the next decade.
Significant under-counts were seen in six states: Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Texas, according to a post-enumeration study issued on Thursday. Low response rates to Census surveys allegedly account for this, according to the Census Bureau.
There were additional overcounts in eight other states, according to the bureau report: Delaware, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Utah.
Since the 1980 Census, the Census Bureau has conducted a decennial population count, estimating the population based on demographic data and household information. The states with the most undercounts were those in the South.
According to reports, analysts looked at the number of persons who may have been listed as inhabitants of a state more than once, in addition to omission data. The state of Florida didn’t have an exceptionally high rate on the latter statistic, but the number of persons considered to be missing from the report was among the worst in the country.
In April 2021, census reapportionment gave seats in Congress to states, with Florida receiving one seat. That means Florida’s congressional delegation will rise from 27 to 28 members following the midterm elections. Florida was split into 28 seats of equal population via a once-in-a-decade redistricting procedure.
Census officials estimate the 2010 Census undercount by just 0.45%. Florida’s 3.48% undercount was the most severe in the country. Only Arkansas, where analysts believe the population was under-estimated by 5.04%, was remarkable. The study estimates the U.S. population was likely underestimated by 0.24%, according to reports.
Reports show that to mitigate the effects of the overcounts and undercounts, the bureau has formed an internal team that will investigate how to incorporate the results of the follow-up survey into the bureau’s population estimates. Which, along with census data, guide the distribution of an estimated $1.5 trillion in federal funds to local communities.
