House Republicans passed a bill on Wednesday to add a citizenship question to the census and exclude noncitizens from the official headcount when determining population for representation in Congress and electoral votes. The legislation, which passed on a party-line vote, is part of a series of bills relating to immigration as the November elections approach. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Chuck Edwards, would impact the 2030 census and onward if signed into law.
Republicans argued that including noncitizens in the census skews representation in favor of Democrats, while Democrats warned that the bill would violate the Constitution, harm immigrant communities, and threaten the accuracy of the census. The White House has opposed the bill, stating that it would make it more difficult to obtain accurate data and interfere with the census’s responsibility to count the number of persons in the United States.
During debate, Republicans claimed that the bill is about stacking the vote and could result in an undercount of Hispanic communities. Democrats argued that the bill would harm immigrant communities by excluding permanent residents and could lead to the inaccurate representation of the population. The bill is unlikely to pass the Senate, which is controlled by Democrats, but has sparked a heated debate on the importance of accurate representation in the census.
Overall, the bill has elicited strong reactions from both sides, with Republicans claiming it will ensure fair representation for American citizens, while Democrats warn of potential negative consequences on immigrant communities and the accuracy of census data.
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