Campaign
Census Citizenship Question
Common Cause stopped then-President Trump’s efforts to add a dangerous question on citizenship status to the 2020 Census.
Census
The U.S. Census determines who has fair representation in our government and who can access key resources. That is why Common Cause is committed to making sure that everyone is counted.
Every 10 years, the federal government must conduct a census, or a count of everyone living in the U.S. Getting this process right is crucial as the results determine how voting districts are drawn, how funding and resources are allocated to states, and so much more.
We work in the courts, in the legislature, and on the ground to make sure that the census is conducted fairly and independent from politically-motivated agendas.
What We’re Doing
Litigation
Common Cause v. Trump (Census)
In 2020, Common Cause sued former President Trump for unconstitutionally depriving immigrant communities from equal representation in Congress.
Campaign
Redistricting Principles for a More Perfect Union
Take Action
Petition
Tell Congress: REJECT attempts to undermine our Census
Adding a citizenship question to the U.S. Census and excluding millions of U.S. residents from apportionment counts would discourage countless Americans, whether they’re citizens or not, from filling out the Census.
Getting Census counts right is critical to making sure our government works for everyone. Congress must REJECT this dangerous legislation and help protect fair and accurate Census counts.
Your financial support helps us make an impact by holding power accountable and strengthening democracy.
Updates
Blog Post
Gerrymander Gazette: Cynical Court Strategy Edition
Blog Post
Gerrymander Gazette: Big Wins in NC and PA Edition
Blog Post
The U.S. Senate confirms the first person of color to lead the Census Bureau
After decades of miscounting people of color, the Census Bureau is finally has it's first Latino director.
Related Resources
Report
Redistricting Data Release
On August 12, 2021, the U.S. Census Bureau released redistricting "legacy" data to the states. Although these data will require some time to process, this is the information states and localities need to draw new voting districts that are designed to last for the entire decade. The updated schedule for releasing these data has impacted state redistricting and election timelines. Learn more here.
Report
Whitewashing Representation
Partisan operatives are trying to change how electoral districts are drawn, in a radical effort to undermine our representative democracy.
Report
The Hofeller Files
Evidence obtained by Common Cause confirms how political operatives spent years plotting to rig our democracy with a Census citizenship question. GOP’s chief gerrymandering mastermind Thomas Hofeller laid out a plan to add the citizenship question to the Census. The purpose? Manipulating our Census and redistricting process to be, in Hofeller’s words, “advantageous to Republicans and Non-Hispanic Whites."
Letter
Over 300 Civil Rights, Faith, and Labor Leaders Demand Oversight on Census Citizenship Question
We urge the Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs to conduct oversight hearings on the Commerce Secretary’s decision to add a citizenship question to the decennial census as soon as possible.
Press
Press Release
Groups Urge Census Changes to Accurately Count Prison Populations For Redistricting
Today, Common Cause and the Prison Policy Initiative urged the U.S. Census Bureau to change how it counts prison populations each decade. The Bureau’s use of differential privacy, the intentional infusion of inaccurate information into population data, creates unnecessary miscounts in data used by state and local officials for redistricting. In a letter to Director Robert L. Santos and other senior officials, the groups emphasized that the populations of correctional facilities are already publicly available and that differential privacy is...
Press Release
Common Cause Urges “No” Vote on So-Called Equal Representation Act
Common Cause is urging every member of the U.S. House of Representatives to vote “no” when the so-called “Equal Representation Act” (H.R. 7109) is expected to be brought to the floor later this afternoon. The proposed legislation would impede the U.S Census Bureau from performing its constitutionally mandated responsibility to count the number of persons in the United States each ten years in the Census. The bill also ignores the Constitution.
Press Release
Watchdogs Raise Alarm on Dangerous Anti-Democracy Referral