U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) is praising the passage of legislation he cosponsored that in effect excludes illegal immigrants from the U.S. Census.
The U.S. House of Representatives approved the “The Equal Representation Act,” which adds a citizenship question to the census. “It’s simple- only U.S. citizens should be counted when deciding congressional representation,” Palmer said.
It's simple- only U.S. citizens should be counted when deciding congressional representation.
This is why I co-sponsored @RepChuckEdwards' Equal Representation Act and look forward to voting for it later this afternoon. https://t.co/Ii1xtNSNuQ
— Gary Palmer (@USRepGaryPalmer) May 8, 2024
The bill was originally introduced by Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-Ill.) in an effort to make sure illegal immigrants aren’t used in redistricting to help Democrats pick up more seats.
“Including the count of non-US citizens in determining how many congressional seats and electoral votes each state has is skewing the representation of Americans in their federal government,” Edwards said in a statement.
RELATED: Gary Palmer warns illegal immigration could hijack U.S. elections
Edwards also thanked Palmer for his support in getting the legislation passed.
Thank you @USRepGaryPalmer for supporting the Equal Representation Act so that American citizens – and American citizens alone – can determine their representation in Congress. https://t.co/2ngVSA2f3z
— Congressman Chuck Edwards (@RepChuckEdwards) May 8, 2024
Palmer has been sounding the alarm on this issue for months, warning that the opposing party will using the continuing illegal immigration crisis to help their electoral chances in the future.
“It’s not about being able to vote, it’s being able to count them because with about every 750,000 people you get a representative in Congress,” Palmer argued in January.. “Well what that could mean is if California picked up another 2 million people, Alabama could lose a representative because we’re not going to go over 435 representatives. So instead of me representing, say, 730,000 people, I might have to go to representing 800,000 people, and us lose a seat in Alabama and California pick up one. That’s the problem.”
The next decennial census is slated to take place in 2030.
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
Don’t miss out! Subscribe today to have Alabama’s leading headlines delivered to your inbox.