BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts has seen its political influence wane in recent decades as populations have shifted, so officials are working to ensure that it doesn’t lose any more ground in the census next year.

Three of the last four U.S. census counts have ended with Massachusetts losing a congressional seat after its population grew at a slower pace than in other parts of the country. In 1980, the state had 12 representatives in the U.S. House; it now has nine. That also means less clout in presidential elections, as the state’s Electoral College vote has dipped from 14 when Ronald Reagan was first elected to 11 in the last two national elections.


While there is little chance of Massachusetts gaining back any of its lost representation in Washington, state officials and advocacy groups are expressing confidence that the state at least won’t be forced to give up any additional seats when the national count happens in 2020.

Yet nothing is being taken for granted, and officials note the state faces a number of potential challenges, including a population that includes many immigrants, elderly and college students.

Among the concerns raised is that the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration could make many immigrants fearful about cooperating with the federal census.

As for the students, though they may come from other states and go home between semesters, those who spend the better portion of the year in Massachusetts are supposed to be counted as residents. Often, they are not.

To mark the one-year countdown to National Census Day, Secretary of State William Galvin has invited state and local officials to meet in Framingham on Monday to outline strategies for ensuring that all Massachusetts residents — or as many as possible — are properly counted. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh plans to host a similar event in his city that day.

“I can’t overemphasize the importance to our political and economic future,” said Galvin, a Democrat, noting that the results of the census also determine levels of federal aid that the state and local communities receive in critical areas such as transportation, education and public health.


Current estimates suggest the state has about 6.9 million residents, Galvin said, an increase from the official 6.54 million count in 2010. The challenge, he said, is to make the estimate stand up when the counting actually begins.

About 1 million people living in the state were not born in the U.S., Galvin said. About half of those are naturalized citizens, while the rest are non-citizens including some living in the country illegally. Because of what he calls an “extremely hostile” climate toward immigrants, “people are much more suspicious about telling the government anything, especially the federal government.”

A push by the administration to add a citizenship question to the census has been blocked by the courts for now, but the U.S. Supreme Court is reviewing the legality of such a move and could issue a ruling in the coming months.

When the U.S. Commerce Department announced the plan to add a citizenship question, it said the Justice Department asked for it and it would improve enforcement of a 1965 law meant to protect minority voting rights.

But critics say a citizenship question could further complicate efforts to get an accurate count in states like Massachusetts with more diverse populations. They argue it might lead some non-citizens to assume, incorrectly, that they are not eligible to be counted and so would not bother filling out questionnaires.

Several private and nonprofit organizations have already begun efforts to ensure an accurate count, in part by convincing residents that information they provide census-takers is safe because of federal rules limiting the use of the answers to demographic data only.


“They are not asking for Social Security numbers,” said Katie Campbell Simons, project consultant for the Massachusetts Census Equity Fund. “It’s less information than what people put on social media on a daily basis.”

The organization has raised more than $1 million so far, money that will be distributed as grants to local canvassing groups around the state, especially in urban areas, Campbell Simons said. Galvin is also requesting funds in the state budget to help with census preparations.

Framingham was chosen to host the statewide kickoff event, Galvin said, because it typifies many of the challenges cities face. More than 25 percent of its population is foreign born and the city also has a sizeable student presence.

“The census determines the resources that come to Framingham, and I want to make sure that everyone is counted,” said Mayor Yvonne Spicer.