Census data delay scrambles plans for states’ redistricting

Stymied by delayed census data needed for redistricting, some states are considering postponing their 2022 primaries or turning to other population estimates to start the once-a-decade task of redrawing voting districts used for U.S. House and state legislative elections.

The U.S. Census Bureau was supposed to provide redistricting data to the states by March 31, but after setbacks from the pandemic, it won’t be ready until mid-to-late August and might not be available in an easy-to-use format until Sept. 30.

That’s later than the legal deadlines to complete redistricting in some states and could mean less time for court challenges, candidate filing and ballot creation. The delay has sent states scrambling to adapt. Some face the decision to sidestep their constitutional deadlines or draw stopgap maps that might not fully reflect population shifts in the past decade.

“States that have done the exact same thing for decades in a row now have to look for alternatives,” said Wendy Underhill, director of elections and redistricting at the National Conference of State Legislatures.

In many states, redistricting is done by lawmakers subject to a gubernatorial veto. A growing number will use independent or bipartisan commissions, but Republicans will have ultimate control over redistricting in more than twice as many states as Democrats.

Political control allows officials to draw districts that make it easier for their candidates to win future elections — something Republicans did more effectively than Democrats after the 2010 census.

Although the census is typically used for redistricting, only about half the states have laws or constitutional provisions explicitly requiring them to use census data, according to the NCSL.