Democratic group scathes Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar for voting ‘yes’ on census citizenship question
MIAMI – The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee criticized a “yes” vote made by Florida Republican Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar that would require a citizenship question on the next decennial U.S. Census.
The DCCC said the legislation would lead to Florida Hispanics being under-counted in the next census in 2030. It also claimed the bill is a direct affront to the 14th Amendment which calls for a count of “whole number of persons in each state.”
“Heard of the 14th Amendment? María Elvira Salazar clearly hasn’t. Instead of working to deliver for hardworking Florida Latinos by lowering costs, expanding health care, or creating good paying jobs, Salazar is choosing to deliberately undercount them – a dangerous political game that could lead to less resources for Florida’s Hispanic communities,” DCCC Spokesperson Lauryn Fanguen said in a release.
Claiming it under-counts Hispanics, the DCCC noted a similar question to the 2020 census was blocked by the Supreme Court during the Trump administration. According to a study from Pew Research, Hispanics were vastly undercounted for the census by three million, or one-in-twenty.
Along with Salazar, H.R. 7109 was passed 206-202 last Wednesday along party lines. It was originally introduced by North Carolina Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards as the Equal Representation Act in January.
Other Florida Republican lawmakers to vote for the measure included Reps. Carlos Gimenez and Mario Diaz-Balart, both in southern Florida. That area’s Democrats voting down the measure included Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick.
Under H.R. 7109, the bill would require any questionnaire used in the decennial census must include a “checkbox or other similar option for respondents to indicate whether the respondent and each household member is a U.S. citizen.”
The bill also requires the number of citizens and non-citizens be publicized by the Department of Commerce. It then mandates that a statement by the President to Congress concludes the number of persons in each state excludes noncitizens, which relates to the reapportionment of U.S. Representatives.
Represented by Salazar, Florida’s 27th Congressional District covers much of Miami’s suburbs. Miami-Dade County is nearly 70% Hispanic, making it one of the largest Latin American communities in the U.S.
In 2022, Salazar defeated Democratic candidate Annette Taddeo in the House by nearly 15%. Salazar is seeking her third term in District 27.
Last year, the DCCC mentioned Salazar’s district as a place in play for Democrats.
“Instead of solving this issue, María Elvira Salazar followed her party’s far-right agenda and voted in favor of this extreme bill that would make the Census dramatically less accurate, jeopardizing federal investments and resources for Floridians,” the DCCC said.
Florida’s Voice has reached out to Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar for comment
