Latinos and Blacks undercounted in 2020 Census

The 2020 Census undercounted the Black, Latino and indigenous populations, even more so than in the last decade's Census. The undercount comes after delays of data collection caused by COVID-19 and an effort by the Trump administration to introduce a citizenship question on the Census form. 

Data released by the Census Bureau on Thursday also showed an overcount for the non-Hispanic White population and Asian population, as well as an undercount for children from 17 years old and younger.

The undercount rate for Latinos was more than triple what it was in the 2010 Census, while the Black population was undercounted by a rate that was about 60% higher, compared to 2010.

Latinos saw about a 5% undercount in 2020, compared to 1.54% in the 2010 Census. The undercount rate for the Black population was 3.3% in 2020, compared to 2% in 2010. The indigenous population on reservations saw a 5.64% undercount in 2020, up slightly from 4.8% in 2010.

The non-Hispanic white population saw an overcount of 0.66% in 2020, compared to 0.54% in 2010. The Asian population was overcounted by 2.62% in 2020, up from the estimated 0% error in 2010."

Still, Census Bureau Director Robert L. Santos says the overall national population count is accurate and that the quality of the count itself is "consistent with that of recent censuses."

Overall, the Census Bureau's post-enumeration survey found that there was a net coverage undercount of 0.25% or 782,000 for the nation. In statistical terms, it found neither an undercount nor an overcount.  

These population numbers are used to determine levels of federal funding for public services for certain areas, as well as how many congressional seats each state will have for the decade. The bureau released numbers only on a national level and will release more specific state-level numbers later this year. 

"This is notable, given the unprecedented challenges of 2020," said Santos. "Taking today's findings as a whole, we believe the 2020 Census data are fit for many uses in decision-making as well as for painting a vivid portrait of our nation's people."

But Kelly Percival, a senior counsel for the Brennan Center, a left-leaning public policy institute, said the undercount is "alarming" and noted this is the second census since World War II to be less accurate than the decade before. She called Trump's push to put a citizenship question on the form "unprecedented meddling" and "definitely played a factor in contributing to people's hesitations to fill out the form."

"Communities strongly represented in the count can claim significant political power and money. Whereas communities that go undercounted, they lose out on their fair share of all of our resources," she added.