Trump Orders New U.S. Census Excluding Undocumented Immigrants Amid Congressional Redistricting Battle
President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he has directed the Department of Commerce to conduct a new U.S. census that would exclude undocumented immigrants from population counts, marking an unprecedented departure from traditional census practices and escalating nationwide redistricting battles as Republicans seek to maximize congressional representation ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Breaking with Constitutional Tradition
In a Truth Social post early Thursday morning, Trump declared his intent to order "a new and highly accurate CENSUS based on modern-day facts and figures" that would specifically exclude individuals residing in the United States illegally. "People who are in our Country illegally WILL NOT BE COUNTED IN THE CENSUS," the president wrote, emphasizing his administration's commitment to fundamentally altering how America conducts its constitutionally mandated population count.
This directive represents a dramatic shift from the 235-year history of the U.S. Census Bureau, which has consistently counted all residents regardless of immigration status. According to the Census Bureau's official policy, it "collects data from all foreign-born who participate in its censuses and surveys, regardless of legal status".
The Constitution requires a national census every decade to determine congressional representation, with the official census website noting that it is designed to count "every resident in the United States". The 14th Amendment mandates explicitly counting "the whole number of persons in each state" for purposes of congressional apportionment.
Political Calculations Drive Timing
Trump's census announcement comes amid intense Republican efforts to redraw congressional maps in states like Texas, where GOP leaders are pursuing an unprecedented mid-decade redistricting effort aimed at securing up to five additional Republican seats. The president has repeatedly pressured Texas Republicans to maximize their congressional gains, stating that "Texas would be the biggest one" among states where Republicans could gain seats through redistricting.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and other Republican leaders have previously argued that undocumented immigrants counted in states like California unfairly affect congressional representation in different states, claiming Florida should have secured an additional House seat based on citizen-only counts.
The timing proves particularly significant as Republicans currently hold a narrow 219-212 House majority with four vacant seats, making potential gains from both redistricting and census changes crucial for maintaining control amid historically challenging midterm dynamics for the party in power.
Constitutional and Legal Challenges Await
Legal experts and Democratic leaders immediately condemned the proposal as unconstitutional, with the National Democratic Redistricting Committee characterizing the measures as "blatantly unconstitutional" attempts to "strip millions of Americans of representation". The organization warned that any such legislation would face immediate legal challenges "on clear and obvious grounds".
Democratic Representative Grace Meng of New York, who has led congressional opposition to similar proposals, told NPR that excluding noncitizens from census counts is "something that is reckless and cynical and, quite frankly, illegal". She warned that such measures would "affirm the fears of undocumented immigrants and immigrants with legal status that registering with the government could lead to deportation".
The Supreme Court previously blocked Trump's attempt to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, ruling in a 5-4 decision that the administration had not provided adequate justification for the inclusion. During his first term, Trump persistently advocated for citizenship questions despite legal setbacks, ultimately shifting tactics to request federal agency records that could help estimate citizen populations without directly querying census respondents.
Massive Federal Funding at Stake
Beyond congressional representation, census data determines how more than $2.8 trillion annually in federal funding is distributed to states and local communities for critical services, including Medicare, Medicaid, schools, roads, and other public infrastructure. Census advocates worry that questioning immigration status could lead communities to lose their fair share of federal resources in the coming decade.
Beth Werlin, executive director of the American Immigration Council, previously warned that manipulating census counts could mean communities "lack resources to respond to crises when needed". The organization estimates that excluding undocumented immigrants would remove approximately 10.7 million people from official counts, significantly impacting states with large immigrant populations.
Notably, while Republican proposals call for excluding noncitizens from congressional apportionment calculations, none have proposed removing them from the overall census numbers used to distribute trillions in federal funding to states and districts.
Redistricting Arms Race Intensifies
The census announcement has accelerated what experts describe as a "redistricting arms race" across multiple states. California Governor Gavin Newsom has threatened "retaliatory redistricting" in response to Republican efforts, warning that "two can play that game". Other Democratic governors are reportedly considering similar countermeasures.
In Texas, the GOP-led special session aimed at mid-decade redistricting has triggered fierce Democratic resistance, with minority lawmakers threatening to flee the state to deny Republicans the quorum needed for voting. Texas Democrats have vowed "all-out war" against what they characterize as an unprecedented attack on democracy orchestrated directly by Trump.
The redistricting battle reflects broader concerns about the increasing nationalization of state politics, with Trump's direct intervention representing what experts call an unprecedented level of federal involvement in state legislative redistricting processes.
Administrative and Practical Hurdles
Implementing a new census would face substantial logistical and financial challenges. The 2020 census required extensive resources and years of preparation to complete. Census operations typically take several years to plan, with significant lead times needed for questionnaire development, field operations, and data processing.
Trump's track record of challenging federal statistical agencies adds complexity to the effort. Last Friday, he fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer after standard job report revisions showed employers added 258,000 fewer jobs than previously reported, undermining Trump's claims of economic improvement. This pattern of reshaping basic measures of how U.S. society is faring to his liking raises questions about the independence of federal statistical operations.
Historical Precedent and Future Implications
The push to exclude undocumented immigrants from census counts continues a broader Republican effort that gained momentum following the Biden administration's immigration policies. Republican Representative Clay Higgins of Louisiana argued that "the level of illegal persons that now live within the continental borders of the United States has reached such a point that it thwarts the intended service of our representative republic".
Some Republican proposals have gone further than Trump's current plan, calling for the exclusion of all noncitizens—including green card and visa holders—rather than just undocumented immigrants. Representative James Comer of Kentucky has pointed to estimates suggesting approximately 22 million noncitizens live in the United States, arguing they are "not evenly distributed among the states".
National Stakes and Democratic Response
The outcome of Trump's census initiative and related redistricting battles will likely determine whether mid-decade redistricting becomes standard practice in American politics, with parties continuously redrawing maps to maximize advantage rather than waiting for decennial redistribution.
Democratic leaders warn the changes could permanently alter American democracy, with the National Democratic Redistricting Committee arguing that current Republican proposals would "disenfranchise Americans, undermine the accuracy of the census, and give Republicans an opportunity to gerrymander ahead of the 2026 midterms further".
As legal challenges and political battles intensify, the fundamental question remains whether Trump's directive to exclude undocumented immigrants from census counts can overcome constitutional requirements, practical obstacles, and fierce Democratic opposition. The resolution of this conflict will shape not only congressional representation but the broader trajectory of American electoral democracy in the years ahead.
The stakes extend far beyond individual congressional seats, potentially redefining the relationship between federal statistical agencies and political power while testing the limits of presidential authority to reshape foundational democratic institutions. With the 2026 midterm elections approaching and control of Congress hanging in the balance, Trump's census gambit represents perhaps the most significant challenge to traditional American political norms since the founding of the republic.