Census Revelation: NYS To Lose One Congressional Seat

We have all heard that "you vote counts."  And that has proved true in the last several elections.  In fact you saw that recently in the local Anthony Brindisi/Claudia Tenney congressional race.  It took months after the election for all the ballots to be certified and Ms. Tenney ended up winning the race by a mere handful of votes.

Well, the same is true with the US Census.  The recently completed census has a significant impact on the states.  It dictates school funds, allocation of federal monies, and whether or not a state could lose a Congressional seat or not.

It happened to us.

By the slimmest of margins, just 89 census returns out of millions recorded, the result means that New York State will actually lose a Congressional seat in the next election.  Had just 89 more state residents responded to the census forms our state would have kept all 27 seats ni the U.S. Congress.  That is not going to happen.

Governor Andrew Cuomo today asked the New York State Attorney General to challenge the decision regarding the census results.  He is doing the challenge on the basis that it was extremely difficult to hold a census count during a pandemic.  The governor's full statement reads:

"Census takers in New York faced unprecedented challenges last year in their efforts to get New Yorkers counted - from the pandemic's effect on the mail system to the Trump Administration's xenophobic, flagrant, and illegal efforts to hurt blue states by discouraging non-citizens and people of color from being counted. And despite a growing state population, New York State's congressional delegation will lose a seat in the House of Representatives next year, having fallen an equally-unprecedented 89 responses short of continuity. So much of our state's recovery, revitalization, and resilience is dependent on having our voice heard in Washington, and we won't allow Trump and his cronies to use one of our greatest attributes - our diversity - as an impediment. I'm calling on the Attorney General to review all legal options available to ensure the voice of every New Yorker is fairly and wholly represented in the halls of Congress."

Just 89 responses short.  So...did you fill out your census form?