The U.S. Supreme Court, dominated by conservative justices, agreed Friday (Oct. 23) to hear arguments for not counting undocumented immigrants in recently concluded U.S. Census.
A day after a lower court ruled against Donald Trump's executive order to exclude the undocumented from the decennial count, the High Court accepted the appeal by government lawyers.
Until this year, undocumented people have always been included in the Census under the mandate of the U.S. Constitution to count "every person" in the country.
Census data determines how House seats, which determines Electoral College votes, are divided among the states, a three-judge federal count said in September when it held Trump’s policy illegal. Trump believes that excluding undocumented would hurt immigrant-heavy states like California and New York. What the administration didn't think through, though, is that traditionally Republican-dominated states like Texas, Florida and Texas would also be hurt by the order.
The Supreme Court put the case on the fast track in case Trump loses the November election. SCOTUS will hear arguments Nov. 30 and render a decision before the end of year. It could be the first decision faced by Trump's SCOTUS nominee Amy Coney Barrett if her nomination is approved by the Senate next week.
Nationally, the undocumented population has stabilized at approximately 11 million with about a quarter of that number residing in California, the lead plaintiff in this case.
While the general public believe most undocumented immigrants come from Mexico, the majority are from other countries. The four largest Asian undocumented populations are from India, Korea, the Philippines, and China. Between 2007 and 2017, the number of Indian undocumented immigrants in the country alone grew by over 60 percent, from 325,000 people to 525,000—about 5 percent of the total undocumented immigrant population, according to the Pew Research Center.
Nationally, the undocumented population has stabilized at approximately 11 million with about a quarter of that number residing in California, the lead plaintiff in this case.
While the general public believe most undocumented immigrants come from Mexico, the majority are from other countries. The four largest Asian undocumented populations are from India, Korea, the Philippines, and China. Between 2007 and 2017, the number of Indian undocumented immigrants in the country alone grew by over 60 percent, from 325,000 people to 525,000—about 5 percent of the total undocumented immigrant population, according to the Pew Research Center.
The lower court on Thursday ruled on behalf of the plaintiffs saying that the exclusion of undocumented immigrants violates the Constitution's requirements about how congressional districts are apportioned. It also found the order violated other federal laws.
“The Constitution’s text, drafting history, 230 years of historical practice, and Supreme Court case law all support the conclusion that apportionment must be based on all persons residing in each state, including undocumented immigrants,” wrote the three-judge panel.
The outcome of the census case would benefit Republicans in the House and could affect the distribution of political power for the next 10 years. The census also helps determine the distribution of $1.5 trillion in federal funding annually.
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