Newswise — The Supreme Court hears oral arguments about the citizenship question on Tuesday. U-M Sociology Professor Barbara Anderson was the head of the committee that strongly advised the Trump Administration not to include the proposed citizenship question on the questionnaire, and he removed her three months later.
Many people are concerned that including the citizenship question will suppress the response rate. Anderson says the greater concern, though, about the question is that it is likely that the Justice Department wants to use it as a way to change the basis for drawing legislative districts -- to count eligible voters rather than total population.
The change would turn an estimated five Democratic seats into Republican seats, and would create more districts in states with older populations, which would also give red states more representative power.
It's a gerrymander move that could have a significant effect on the political landscape if it came to pass.
Anderson is available to discuss this. She can be reached by cell phone: (734) 255-4023; or email [email protected]
https://lsa.umich.edu/soc/
U-M has a satellite uplink TV studio and an ISDN radio line for interviews.
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