WORT 89.9FM Madison · Milwaukee Challenges 2020 Census Count

In 2020, the task of counting every person in the United States proved even more difficult than usual.  As of April 1, 2020, much of the nation was in the early onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which complicated contacting residents and severely limited staff and volunteers available.  To make matters worse, e-mails recently obtained by the Brennan Center reveal that former President Donald Trump repeatedly attempted to subvert the U.S. census counts for his own political ends.  The census count, originally scheduled to be complete in April, 2021, was delayed until August, when the Trump Administration abruptly ordered the count stopped, over the objections of Census Bureau civil servants.  Two years after the formal count, many cities across the United States believe the flawed process severely under-counted the population, particularly for minority, homeless and transitory populations less likely to fill out a census form.  On December 20, Mayor Cavalier Johnson announced the City of Milwaukee’ formal challenge to the 2020 census results, claiming the 2020 census under-counted the city’s population by almost 17,000 people.  Sharon Robinson is the Director of the City of Milwaukee Department of Administration.

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