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Home News Kansas AG Kris Kobach Files Lawsuit To Challenge 2020 Census Population Count

Kansas AG Kris Kobach Files Lawsuit To Challenge 2020 Census Population Count

by Celia

In a significant legal challenge, Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, alongside his counterparts from West Virginia, Ohio, and Louisiana, has filed a lawsuit seeking to block the U.S. Census Bureau’s controversial rule on population counts. This lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Louisiana, aims to ensure that U.S. House seats and Electoral College votes are fairly distributed in future congressional reapportionments, beginning with the 2030 Census.

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The plaintiffs argue that the Census Bureau’s rule unfairly includes undocumented immigrants and individuals with temporary visas in the population count, which they contend leads to a disproportionate allocation of congressional seats and electoral votes. Specifically, they claim that states with large populations of undocumented individuals, such as California, are granted more representation than they should be entitled to, thereby violating the constitutional principle of equal representation.

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“The inclusion of illegal aliens in the Census undermines the integrity of our democracy and distorts the allocation of political power,” said Attorney General Kobach. “California, for instance, has gained additional congressional seats and electoral votes due to this rule, which deviates from the original vision of our Founding Fathers. This lawsuit seeks to restore that vision.”

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The lawsuit has far-reaching implications, as it could impact the 2020 Census results, which saw several states lose seats to those with higher numbers of undocumented individuals. According to Pew Research, nearly 56% of the nation’s estimated 11.7 million undocumented immigrants live in just six states: California, Texas, Florida, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois.

“If this policy remains in place, Kansas and Louisiana could lose congressional representation and electoral votes in the 2030 Census,” said Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill. “We are fighting to preserve the fair representation our states deserve, and to ensure the Constitution is upheld.”

The lawsuit claims that including undocumented individuals in the Census count violates the 14th Amendment’s promise of equal representation and Article II’s guidelines for the distribution of electoral votes. The suit further argues that the phrase “persons in each state,” as understood during the nation’s founding and post-Civil War reconstruction, should be limited to U.S. citizens and permanent residents lawfully admitted into the country.

“It’s a national embarrassment that the United States, the most powerful country in the world, does not even know how many citizens it has,” said Kobach, emphasizing the urgency of the case. “This lawsuit seeks to correct that oversight and protect the integrity of our elections and congressional representation.”

This legal action builds on efforts initiated by the Trump administration in 2020, when a memorandum was issued to exclude individuals who are not legally in the country from the Census count. Although this memorandum sparked legal battles with organizations such as the ACLU, which argued it bypassed the formal rulemaking process, Kobach and his colleagues continue to press forward with their challenge.

As the lawsuit progresses, it remains to be seen how the courts will rule on this critical issue, which could affect the distribution of political power in future elections and shape the course of American democracy.

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