Arizona Congressional Seats At Risk If Census Citizenship Question Is Approved

By Holliday Moore
Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services
Published: Monday, April 29, 2019 - 2:29pm
Updated: Tuesday, April 30, 2019 - 6:44am

In late June, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether the controversial citizenship question should be allowed on the Census.

But, research shows Arizona and other red states in support of it could lose representation and millions of dollars.

Critics say asking residents if they're U.S. citizens is White House stunt in retaliation against California.

If approved, Arizona, Florida and Texas, they warn, will also suffer.

Two studies show the three conservative states, with high immigration populations, will likely hand over those lost seats to Idaho and Montana.

Although he admitted Arizona could lose $887 in federal funding for every person not counted, Gov. Doug Ducey recently brushed off concerns.

"The questions by the federal government have been different over the course of time," he told Capitol Media Service in early May. "They write the questions. The Census is conducted, and I want to see everyone counted."

Ducey created a committee to work on education to ensure people answer the census.

Another study showed nearly 10 percent of minority immigrants polled will skip the Census. Half fear the information will be shared with other government agencies.

Politics