Trump signs dubious executive order to bar undocumented immigrants from counting toward House apportionment

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 21 July 2020

President Trump signed a memorandum Tuesday that will bar undocumented immigrants from being used to determine congressional apportionment and Electoral College votes.

The decision is legally dubious, as the Constitution specifically says the census counts "persons" to determine House seats, and the 14th Amendment requires counting "whole number of persons in each state." Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) went so far as to call it "flagrantly unconstitutional," while Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) changed up the adjective to call it "patently unconstitutional." Trump countered in a statement that his memo "reflects a better understanding of the Constitution."

The decision comes as 2020 census counting efforts are well underway, so it's unclear how the order would be implemented. The Trump administration previously tried and failed to put a citizenship question on the census. Advocates said the question would discourage undocumented people from filling out the census, and the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration had been dishonest about their reasons for adding the question.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox