Immigrants Might Save Michigan From Losing Another Congressional Seat

Michigan’s influence in Washington is already waning. The 2020 census could lead to even less representation.

MichMash Logo

Photo credit: WDET Digital

Jake Neher/WDET

There’s a lot at stake for Michigan with the upcoming U.S. Census count in 2020. A huge chunk of Michigan’s budget is connected to the state’s population. And there’s a chance — if Michigan doesn’t keep up with population gains across the country — that we might lose another congressional seat.

Those stakes are now sparking conversations at places like the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference.

As part of a new weekly series called MichMash, WDET’s Jake Neher and Michigan Public Radio’s Cheyna Roth talk about a new effort to make sure all Michiganders are counted on the census.

The group, 2020 Nonprofits Count Campaign, hopes to target groups that are often under-counted, such as immigrants, homeless people, and minority children. 

Click here to listen to Neher’s recent conversation with the coalition’s co-chairs and learn more about their efforts.

Click on the audio player above to hear Neher and Roth talk about the issue on MichMash.


WDET’s Mackinac Policy Conference coverage is sponsored by The Henry Ford.

Authors

  • Cheyna Roth is the co-host and creator of WDET's state politics podcast, MichMash. She has been an audio journalist for almost a decade, covering major events like presidential elections, college scandals, the Michigan Legislature and more, appearing on NPR and across Michigan public radio stations. Cheyna is also a senior producer and podcast host for Slate.com, having produced and hosted shows like Political Gabfest, The Waves, and What Next TBD. Also an author, Cheyna has written two true crime books and her written work has appeared in Broadly, Slate, and MLive, among others.
  • Jake Neher is senior producer for Detroit Today and host of MichMash for 101.9 WDET. He previously reported on the Michigan Legislature for the Michigan Public Radio Network.