California likely to lose congressional seat due to migration

December 31, 2019

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

Fueled by residents leaving the state, largely due to the high cost of living, California is currently at risk of losing a congressional seat. [LA Times]

On Monday, the U.S. Census Bureau released population estimates. California was one of 27 states that lost residents through net domestic migration. California lost about 203,000 residents.

Next year’s census count will determine congressional reapportionment. If California were to lose a congressional seat, it would mark the first time that occurred in California’s history as a state.

California’s potential loss in reapportionment would decrease the state’s seat total in the House of Representatives from 53 to 52.

William Frey, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said the potential loss of a congressional seat has a lot to do with California residents moving to Arizona, Texas, Colorado and other western states.

Texas, the state to which an estimated 63,000 Californians moved in 2017, stands to potentially gain three congressional seats. Arizona, Colorado and Oregon may gain one seat each.

California’s Citizens Redistricting Commission will hold public hearings in 2021 to determine how to redraw congressional maps.

Paul Mitchell, a leading analyst of the redistricting process, said two areas that may be at risk of losing a congressional seat are the communities located at the intersection of Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties and the suburbs east of San Francisco.

However, other changes to congressional maps, particularly in the Central Valley, are also expected, so it might be difficult to notice the impact of losing a House seat due to population, Mitchell said.

But, Mitchell also said if California’s Latino and non-citizen populations do not participate in the census as much as state officials would like, California could be at risk of losing more than one seat.


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As a native California resident, I have to say good riddance! Or should I say Adios! I’m disgusted by all of the elected politicians.My state should NOT be a huge sponge for illegal aliens. Law abiding residents are being taxed, fined, and told what we may or may not do by some Draconian overlord. We really need a moderate party to bring us back to sanity. And no; I m sure as hell not going to leave! If you love California, stay here and fight back! And if you miss your own country or other state so much, feel free to leave!


Allow the people in the state to vote which seat gets removed…let the people decide…oh wait…this is California…the people have no say here….


Does “Fiddling while Rome burns” come to mind? This state and the dems are so concerned about being politically correct that they are destroying this state. The only thing left that California has going for it is the geography, and now that is not even enough to keep people here.


“… two areas that may be at risk of losing a congressional seat are the communities located at the intersection of Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties and the suburbs east of San Francisco.”


If it’s only a loss of only one seat, and if it’s a choice between anything in the Bay area and any other area that includes anything in Orange County, it’s going to be the Orange County area that gets lost.


Does anybody truly believe that the Dems would miss an opportunity to rob Republicans of another Congressional seat?


If the loss is more than one seat, then things will get more interesting, and possibly less predictable. But regardless of how many seats are lost, it’s going to be another dirty, ugly political swindle by the politicians in charge.


Term limits anyone?


Didn’t we hand over the boundary settings to a non-partisan panel? It was a ballot initiative long ago.


There’s a problem with this story. Typical Representatives represent 700,000+ people. You don’t lose a seat just because of a 200,000 population drop.


I hope they take Salud Carbajal’s seat, he is doing nothing good.


Sac Bee reports 691000 Californians left in 2018 and 5 million have left in last decade


The statement reads “California lost about 203,000 residents”, shouldn’t it say “California lost about legal 203,000 residents”. The total population probably has gone up in California but that includes illegals. The state motto should be “Come to California for everything free if you are illegal”


I don’t understand why it is acceptable for hard working citizens to have their wages taxed to pay for benefits awarded to those who have broken the law and entered our country illegally. I don’t care about the immigration issues; I just believe that any form of assistance should be available only to citizens of the US. To quote Pilosi: “no one is above the law”; why does this not apply to illegal aliens?


Good.