2020 Census & Elections

2020 Census has impacted our voting power and election results in the next 10 years!

2020 Census and Redistricting

2020 Census data is not only important to Asian American communities which have grown greatly in population over the last 10 years since the 2010 Census, but also has an significant impact in the next 10 years on the political balance in the country.

This is because the Congressional and state legislative districts have to be redrawn every 10 years based on the new census data. In the past, "gerrymandering" is a frequently used political tactic in Voter Suppression to draw the voting districts intentionally and to cut off the voter power and rights of minority and vulnerable communities.

Read about "Redistricting" and "2020 Census Data" on League of Women Voters website. Wikipedia also maintains a more lengthy discussion on Redistricting Cycle in the US. Below are simple graphics to explain the process in a simplistic and illustrative way.

The battle to control the state legislative chambers, and therefore, the redistricting process based on the 2020 Census data, is folded in the 2020 election that voters need to be aware of. The state you live may be in one of such battleground states.

See a Ballotpedia article on this topic and how you may be affected, ,especially if you live in the swing states of the US: https://ballotpedia.org/State_legislative_battleground_chambers,_2020

-Why our community needs to participate in 2020 Census? How is census related to elections and our voting power?

US census is every 10 years. 2020 Census data is very important, as data of 2010 census is no longer applicable for Asian American population, which has a very fast growth in the last 10 years.

Census data are used not only for all federal, state, and county resource allocations, for example, roads, schools, hospitals, libraries, public infrastructure, business planning, city development, emergency management, flood control, etc, it is also used to draw all election districts at all levels.

In the past, Chinese Americans have always been under-counted by about 30%-40%. This means, our votes have not been taken into consideration when re-drawing the voting districts. Also, all tax-based resources and public infrastructures have not been allocated properly considering the population growth and distribution.

The amount of federal tax dollar allocated to each person filed under the census is approximately $15,000 over the next 10 years. This is why every member of the community is encouraged to file the census.

You do not have to be a US citizen, green card holder, or have valid visa status to file the census. As long as you live in the US, documented or undocumented, filing census does not depend on your visa or your legal status.

Census data and privacy are protected under strict US Census laws and regulations, so immigrant community will not be harmed but will benefit from filing the census.

Who are responsible of drawing election districts based on the 2020 census data?

Election districts, from the federal levels, to the state levels, are drawn by the state chamber representatives and redistricting committees on the state level, such as the state House members. For example, Congressional Districts, the state-level Senate and House districts, etc, will be re-drawn based on 2020 Census data. This is why electing state chamber members are also very important in the 2020 election, as these are the members who will be taking into account of the population growth, and voting rights of the people, especially immigrant community which is often under-represented and under-counted.

This is another reason why it is very important for immigrant communities to file 2020 Census, and to elect members of the state representatives who can respect the interests and rights of the people.

Deadline of 2020 Census is 9/30/2020. We encourage all members of our community to file the 2020 Census through the US Census Bureau. This can be done easily online, by making a simple phone call, or fill out a simple form.

*Census deadline has been changed because of the COVID pandemics and other legal battles. Please check with the US Census Bureau and your state office to find out about details and newest updates.