12 Aug Release: Nevadans Count Responds to Release of Redistricting Data in Legacy Format
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 12, 2021
Contact: Noé Orosco, noe@silverstatevoices.org
LAS VEGAS, NV – Today, the Census Bureau released, in legacy format, the redistricting data from the 2020 Census. After a five-month delay due to COVID, the release of this data brings Nevada one step closer to redrawing districts.
Redistricting is vital to our democracy, because it helps reflect how the population has changed over the past 10 years. Earlier this year, the Census Bureau released populations for each state, showing Nevada’s total population increased by 404,063 residents in the last decade. The accuracy of this population increase is in part attributed to the work of Nevadans Count, our community partners, and volunteers that helped ensure Nevada received its fair share of federal funding. Nevadans Count continues its commitment to ensure all Nevadans are seen, heard, and represented in the redistricting process.
In order to ensure the population of each district is substantially equal, the Nevada Legislature needs demographic data at the census block level (similar to community blocks). Although the legacy format provides this level of information, it separates the data by a vertical bar “ | ”. This means the Nevada Legislature will need to reformat the data in order to properly use it.
In a Special Session later this fall, the Nevada Legislature will redraw our congressional, state legislative, and Board of Regents district boundaries to ensure equitable representation in Nevada’s communities.
Emily Persaud-Zamora, Executive Director of Silver State Voices and head of the Nevadans Count coalition, said:
“Nevadans Count welcomes the release of the redistricting data. Since the release of this data is in legacy format, and requires additional handling, we are hopeful that the Legislature has the capacity to process and tabulate the data quickly and accurately.
How districts are drawn influences who runs for public office and who is elected; and who lives in a district can influence how quickly, and how effectively, elected officials respond to a community’s needs. The foundation of U.S. democracy for the next 10 years will be determined with the release of today’s data, and it presents an exciting opportunity for Nevadans to be involved in determining that future.
We look forward to engaging with the Nevada Legislature to ensure communities of shared interest, especially BIPOC Nevadans, are honored and the redistricting process has meaningful public input.”
###
About Nevadans Count:
Nevadans Count is a coalition of 21 community based organizations dedicated to ensuring that Nevadans, especially hard to count communities like people of color, immigrants, families with children under the age of five, are represented fair at all levels of government. Nevadans Count is committed to ensuring that all Nevadans are seen, heard, and represented in the redistricting process by conducting outreach, advocacy, and education with communities of color, Nevada Legislature, and stakeholders throughout the state.