The Census has released its population estimates for 2020

[NWI_Irish96]

It'll be interesting to see the eventual shift in battleground states, especially with losses of seats in places like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Ohio.  It likely won't be much different this decade, but will we begin to see Ohio being less the political Holy Land, giving that title to a place like Arizona or Nevada?

The nation sure paid a lot more attention to those states this past election than usual.

Not to get too far into politics here, but it is worth distinguishing between Ohio and PA/MI/WI.

Ohio has been "the" bellwether for a long time, so it probably got about average or maybe even less attention than usual. The other three obviously got way more attention than usual, since they hadn't been considered competitive during the previous ~five cycles.

As far as Congressional seats (and thus electoral votes), states that voted for Trump both times are +3, states that voted for him the first time but not the second are -2, and states that didn't vote for him either time are -1.

[Roadgeekteen]

It'll be interesting to see the eventual shift in battleground states, especially with losses of seats in places like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Ohio.  It likely won't be much different this decade, but will we begin to see Ohio being less the political Holy Land, giving that title to a place like Arizona or Nevada?

The nation sure paid a lot more attention to those states this past election than usual.

Not to get too far into politics here, but it is worth distinguishing between Ohio and PA/MI/WI.

Ohio has been "the" bellwether for a long time, so it probably got about average or maybe even less attention than usual. The other three obviously got way more attention than usual, since they hadn't been considered competitive during the previous ~five cycles.

As far as Congressional seats (and thus electoral votes), states that voted for Trump both times are +3, states that voted for him the first time but not the second are -2, and states that didn't vote for him either time are -1.

Remember, in democrat controlled states they might draw out a republican district and vice versa.

[golden eagle]

Official 2020 state populations:

Alabama 5,024,279
Alaska 733,391
Arizona 7,151,502
Arkansas 3,011,524
California 39,538,223
Colorado 5,773,714
Connecticut 3,605,944
Delaware 989,948
District of Columbia 689,545
Florida 21,538,187
Georgia 10,711,908
Hawaii 1,455,271
Idaho 1,839,106
Illinois 12,812,508
Indiana 6,785,528
Iowa 3,190,369
Kansas 2,937,880
Kentucky 4,505,836
Louisiana 4,657,757
Maine 1,362,359
Maryland 6,177,224
Massachusetts 7,029,917
Michigan 10,077,331
Minnesota 5,706,494
Mississippi 2,961,279
Missouri 6,154,913
Montana 1,084,225
Nebraska 1,961,504
Nevada 3,104,614
New Hampshire 1,377,529
New Jersey 9,288,994
New Mexico 2,117,522
New York 20,201,249
North Carolina 10,439,388
North Dakota 779,094
Ohio 11,799,448
Oklahoma 3,959,353
Oregon 4,237,256
Pennsylvania 13,002,700
Rhode Island 1,097,379
South Carolina 5,118,425
South Dakota 886,667
Tennessee 6,910,840
Texas 29,145,505
Utah 3,271,616
Vermont 643,077
Virginia 8,631,393
Washington 7,705,281
West Virginia 1,793,716
Wisconsin 5,893,718
Wyoming 576,851
TOTAL RESIDENT POPULATION1 331,449,281
Puerto Rico 3,285,874
TOTAL RESIDENT POPULATION, INCLUDING PUERTO RICO 334,735,155

[Roadgeekteen]

Official 2020 state populations:

Alabama 5,024,279
Alaska 733,391
Arizona 7,151,502
Arkansas 3,011,524
California 39,538,223
Colorado 5,773,714
Connecticut 3,605,944
Delaware 989,948
District of Columbia 689,545
Florida 21,538,187
Georgia 10,711,908
Hawaii 1,455,271
Idaho 1,839,106
Illinois 12,812,508
Indiana 6,785,528
Iowa 3,190,369
Kansas 2,937,880
Kentucky 4,505,836
Louisiana 4,657,757
Maine 1,362,359
Maryland 6,177,224
Massachusetts 7,029,917
Michigan 10,077,331
Minnesota 5,706,494
Mississippi 2,961,279
Missouri 6,154,913
Montana 1,084,225
Nebraska 1,961,504
Nevada 3,104,614
New Hampshire 1,377,529
New Jersey 9,288,994
New Mexico 2,117,522
New York 20,201,249
North Carolina 10,439,388
North Dakota 779,094
Ohio 11,799,448
Oklahoma 3,959,353
Oregon 4,237,256
Pennsylvania 13,002,700
Rhode Island 1,097,379
South Carolina 5,118,425
South Dakota 886,667
Tennessee 6,910,840
Texas 29,145,505
Utah 3,271,616
Vermont 643,077
Virginia 8,631,393
Washington 7,705,281
West Virginia 1,793,716
Wisconsin 5,893,718
Wyoming 576,851
TOTAL RESIDENT POPULATION1 331,449,281
Puerto Rico 3,285,874
TOTAL RESIDENT POPULATION, INCLUDING PUERTO RICO 334,735,155

I wonder how accurate this is because of census undercounting.

[golden eagle]

Official 2020 state populations:

Alabama 5,024,279
Alaska 733,391
Arizona 7,151,502
Arkansas 3,011,524
California 39,538,223
Colorado 5,773,714
Connecticut 3,605,944
Delaware 989,948
District of Columbia 689,545
Florida 21,538,187
Georgia 10,711,908
Hawaii 1,455,271
Idaho 1,839,106
Illinois 12,812,508
Indiana 6,785,528
Iowa 3,190,369
Kansas 2,937,880
Kentucky 4,505,836
Louisiana 4,657,757
Maine 1,362,359
Maryland 6,177,224
Massachusetts 7,029,917
Michigan 10,077,331
Minnesota 5,706,494
Mississippi 2,961,279
Missouri 6,154,913
Montana 1,084,225
Nebraska 1,961,504
Nevada 3,104,614
New Hampshire 1,377,529
New Jersey 9,288,994
New Mexico 2,117,522
New York 20,201,249
North Carolina 10,439,388
North Dakota 779,094
Ohio 11,799,448
Oklahoma 3,959,353
Oregon 4,237,256
Pennsylvania 13,002,700
Rhode Island 1,097,379
South Carolina 5,118,425
South Dakota 886,667
Tennessee 6,910,840
Texas 29,145,505
Utah 3,271,616
Vermont 643,077
Virginia 8,631,393
Washington 7,705,281
West Virginia 1,793,716
Wisconsin 5,893,718
Wyoming 576,851
TOTAL RESIDENT POPULATION1 331,449,281
Puerto Rico 3,285,874
TOTAL RESIDENT POPULATION, INCLUDING PUERTO RICO 334,735,155

I wonder how accurate this is because of census undercounting.

I'm not an expert on that, so I won't even begin to guess.

It's hard to believe Michigan never cracked 10 million in the official census. For the first time ever, top ten states now all have at least 10 million people. Next in line is New Jersey with 9.2 million, Virginia with 8.6 million, and Washington with 7.7 million.

[webny99]

Just for fun, here is a version sorted by population so you can see where your state ranks:

1 California   39,538,223
2 Texas   29,145,505
3 Florida   21,538,187
4 New York   20,201,249
5 Pennsylvania   13,002,700
6 Illinois   12,812,508
7 Ohio   11,799,448
8 Georgia   10,711,908
9 North Carolina   10,439,388
10 Michigan   10,077,331
11 New Jersey   9,288,994
12 Virginia   8,631,393
13 Washington   7,705,281
14 Arizona   7,151,502
15 Massachusetts   7,029,917
16 Tennessee   6,910,840
17 Indiana   6,785,528
18 Maryland   6,177,224
19 Missouri   6,154,913
20 Wisconsin   5,893,718
21 Colorado   5,773,714
22 Minnesota   5,706,494
23 South Carolina   5,118,425
24 Alabama   5,024,279
25 Louisiana   4,657,757
26 Kentucky   4,505,836
27 Oregon   4,237,256
28 Oklahoma   3,959,353
29 Connecticut   3,605,944
30 Utah   3,271,616
31 Iowa   3,190,369
32 Nevada   3,104,614
33 Arkansas   3,011,524
34 Mississippi   2,961,279
35 Kansas   2,937,880
36 New Mexico   2,117,522
37 Nebraska   1,961,504
38 Idaho   1,839,106
39 West Virginia   1,793,716
40 Hawaii   1,455,271
41 New Hampshire   1,377,529
42 Maine   1,362,359
43 Rhode Island   1,097,379
44 Montana   1,084,225
45 Delaware   989,948
46 South Dakota   886,667
47 North Dakota   779,094
48 Alaska   733,391
49 District of Columbia   689,545
50 Vermont   643,077
51 Wyoming   576,851

[Roadgeekteen]

Just for fun, here is a version sorted by population so you can see where your state ranks:

1 California   39,538,223
2 Texas   29,145,505
3 Florida   21,538,187
4 New York   20,201,249
5 Pennsylvania   13,002,700
6 Illinois   12,812,508
7 Ohio   11,799,448
8 Georgia   10,711,908
9 North Carolina   10,439,388
10 Michigan   10,077,331
11 New Jersey   9,288,994
12 Virginia   8,631,393
13 Washington   7,705,281
14 Arizona   7,151,502
15 Massachusetts   7,029,917
16 Tennessee   6,910,840
17 Indiana   6,785,528
18 Maryland   6,177,224
19 Missouri   6,154,913
20 Wisconsin   5,893,718
21 Colorado   5,773,714
22 Minnesota   5,706,494
23 South Carolina   5,118,425
24 Alabama   5,024,279
25 Louisiana   4,657,757
26 Kentucky   4,505,836
27 Oregon   4,237,256
28 Oklahoma   3,959,353
29 Connecticut   3,605,944
30 Utah   3,271,616
31 Iowa   3,190,369
32 Nevada   3,104,614
33 Arkansas   3,011,524
34 Mississippi   2,961,279
35 Kansas   2,937,880
36 New Mexico   2,117,522
37 Nebraska   1,961,504
38 Idaho   1,839,106
39 West Virginia   1,793,716
40 Hawaii   1,455,271
41 New Hampshire   1,377,529
42 Maine   1,362,359
43 Rhode Island   1,097,379
44 Montana   1,084,225
45 Delaware   989,948
46 South Dakota   886,667
47 North Dakota   779,094
48 Alaska   733,391
49 District of Columbia   689,545
50 Vermont   643,077
51 Wyoming   576,851

15th, not bad, but I'm guessing that a lot of states passed us.

[webny99]

Just for fun, here is a version sorted by population so you can see where your state ranks:
...

15th, not bad, but I'm guessing that a lot of states passed us.

Not as many as you'd think. MA was 14th in 2010, only Arizona has passed it since then.

[Scott5114]

Haha, suck it, Connecticut!

[kevinb1994]

Haha, suck it, Connecticut!

Hartford's nowhere near as big as the Cow Ford!

[Scott5114]

Haha, suck it, Connecticut!

Hartford's nowhere near as big as the Cow Ford!

what

[kevinb1994]

Haha, suck it, Connecticut!

Hartford's nowhere near as big as the Cow Ford!

what

If you didn't know what I was referring to, Jacksonville used to be known as the Cow Ford.

[golden eagle]

16 Tennessee   6,910,840

I didn't realize Tennessee had that many people, much less closing in on 7 million people. Nashville is booming, so Tennessee as a whole will continue to see its population rise.

[kevinb1994]

16 Tennessee   6,910,840

I didn't realize Tennessee had that many people, much less closing in on 7 million people. Nashville is booming, so Tennessee as a whole will continue to see its population rise.

It's definitely NOT what Louisville is.

[I-55]

16 Tennessee   6,910,840

I didn't realize Tennessee had that many people, much less closing in on 7 million people. Nashville is booming, so Tennessee as a whole will continue to see its population rise.

Passed Indiana, not that I mind. I'll probably move to Middle Tennessee when I'm out of college.

[kevinb1994]

16 Tennessee   6,910,840

I didn't realize Tennessee had that many people, much less closing in on 7 million people. Nashville is booming, so Tennessee as a whole will continue to see its population rise.

Passed Indiana, not that I mind. I'll probably move to Middle Tennessee when I'm out of college.

Middle Tennessee is also a reference to a place of higher education in Murfreesboro.

[kkt]

So at this rate, how long before Texas becomes bigger than California?

[SkyPesos]

I wouldn't be surprised if both GA and NC passes Ohio in population by the 2030 census with how fast they're growing.

[JayhawkCO]

I just want to give a congratulations to Montana for finally crossing the one million mark.

Chris

[mgk920]

Without getting political, looks like power is shifting from the rust belt to the sun belt.

In general yes, but there's also some shifting within the rust belt. In my town, any house listed for sale will get immediate cash offers at $30k or more above list price from people wanting to move from IL. Indiana gained 4.7%, compared to 2.3% for Ohio, 2.0% for Michigan, and Illinois lost 0.1%. It wasn't enough to gain a Congressional seat, but we're in much better shape than the rest of the region.

A lot of what happened in 2020 also happened after Census Day (04-01 in years ending in '0'), including the troubles that came up in late May and have been festering ever since (like in Minnesota, Oregon and Washington).  They won't be accounted for until 2030.

NY was 89 seats short on its lost seat, which is a shame given that follow-up surveys by enumerators were suspended too early. There were probably thousands in NY who weren't counted in time.

Minnesota was the state that held onto all 8 of its seats by the margin of that 89 people.

Minnesota would have very likely lost that seat had Census Day been 08-01 instead of 04-01.

Mike

[webny99]

I just want to give a congratulations to Montana for finally crossing the one million mark.

Now 44 of 50 states have at least 1 million people. Delaware came so close too, I was hoping we'd get to 45.

Also Alabama (barely) and South Carolina for crossing five million
Georgia, Michigan, and North Carolina for crossing 10 million
New York and Florida for crossing 20 million

For the first time ever, top ten states now all have at least 10 million people. Next in line is New Jersey with 9.2 million, Virginia with 8.6 million, and Washington with 7.7 million.

The "10 over 10" club is likely here to stay for a while. New Jersey has a remote shot at 10 million by 2030, but it doesn't seem likely.

[webny99]

There were only three states that lost population between 2010 and 2020: Illinois, Mississippi, and West Virginia

[NWI_Irish96]

There were only two states that lost population between 2010 and 2020: Illinois and West Virginia

Mississippi is still a state

[WillWeaverRVA]

There were only two states that lost population between 2010 and 2020: Illinois and West Virginia

Mississippi is still a state

Debatable.

[webny99]

There were only two states that lost population between 2010 and 2020: Illinois and West Virginia

Mississippi is still a state

Don't know how I missed that. Fixed.

Although it was only 6k, easily the smallest numerical change of any state in either direction.