Census

The Trump administration tried and failed to accomplish a long-held desire of immigration hard-liners — a count of unauthorized immigrants to reshape Congress, the Electoral College and public policy.

Concerns about the accuracy of the census after Trump officials cut the count short have led to calls for a do-over. But the proposal comes with major legal, financial and logistical complications.

The stakes were high and emotions super-charged for the 2020 race.

Curtailing the time for conducting the census in the middle of a pandemic will lead to "fatal data quality flaws that are unacceptable," Census Bureau career officials warned in an internal document.

Because of COVID-19, the Trump administration said it needed more time to make sure the national head count is complete and accurate. But in July, it abruptly decided to end counting a month early.

The third political appointment at the bureau in less than two months comes amid growing concerns about the Trump administration interfering with the 2020 census to benefit Republicans.

The Constitution says the count used to divide up seats in Congress must include every person living in the U.S. President Trump is calling for unauthorized immigrants to be left out.

The president is calling for unauthorized immigrants to be excluded from census numbers used to divide seats in Congress. The Constitution says the count must include every person living in the U.S.

Despite the pandemic, Census Bureau officials say they've determined it's safe enough for visits to unresponsive homes in parts of Connecticut, Indiana, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington.