As news broke this week that New York would lose a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives when New York fell 89 residents short of filing U.S. Census forms, Cortland County Democratic and Republican officials said Thursday they hope the county will remain entirely in one district.
Data released Monday from the U.S. Census Bureau showed that because 89 people did not complete their Census questionnaires, the state would lose one congressional seat, bringing the total to 26, according to news media reports.
This comes even as the state’s population grew about 4% between 2010 and 2020, though other
states grew more. The drop continues a trend, as the population has been growing faster in other parts of the country since the 1950s and 60s, said Robert Spitzer, a distinguished service professor in SUNY Cortland’s political science department.