APPORTIONMENT OF THE U.S. SENATE ON A POPULATION BASIS

Contents:

• A problem: How the Constitution shifts power to small states
• A solution: How to remedy the inequity
• Links

Alexander Hamilton said that a Senate that treats all states as quantitatively equal "shocks too much the ideas of justice and every human feeling."

Small states and their people have lopsided control of Congress. Sanford Levinson, Our Undemocratic Constitution, notes that the Northern Plains states hold much of this power, giving them a disproportionate share of the federal budget.

"California gets two senators; the 20 least populous states, which combined have roughly the same number of people as California, get 40 senators." — George Scialabba, "Democracy-Proof", The American Prospect magazine, July 2002

"In 2004 (the population) ratio was an incredible 70 to 1 between California and tiny Wyoming. Therefore, the current Senate is absurdly skewed in the direction of the small states. Theoretically, if the twenty-six smallest states held together on all votes, they would control the U.S. Senate, with a total of just under 17 percent of the country's population! . . . Some researchers have even convincingly claimed that the structure of the Senate has resulted in a fairly consistent, and dramatic, redistribution of wealth from the large states to the small states. . . . On most crucial policy votes, . . . the arcane rules of the Senate permit 41 of the 100 senators to prevent a final vote on the floor by means of a filibuster-that is, continuous debate. Put another way, even if 59 of the 100 senators favor a particular bill, it will fail if the filibuster is employed, since 60 votes are needed to invoke cloture-the shutting off of the filibuster to permit a floor vote to proceed. Therefore, just 21 states can provide the 41 senators necessary to block action. The 21 most lightly populated states comprise a mere 11.2 percent of the nation's population as the Senate is currently constituted. . . . (N)othing passes without Senate assent. Therefore, the Congress has a one-house veto on legislation, and to control the Senate is to control the legislative outcome, and indeed much of what the federal government actually does. The small-state stranglehold on the Senate is not merely a bump in the road; it is a massive roadblock to fairness that can and often does stop all progressive traffic." — Larry Sabato, A More Perfect Constitution, 2007

Here are districts for electing U.S. Senators based on year 2000 census counts.

50 states plus District of Columbia (Total population = 281,421,906)

(100 senators — ideal constituency size = 2814219.06)

Standards were applied roughly in this order:

• No constituency population varies by more than 5% from the average.
• Civil boundaries (including county divisions) are respected wherever practicality allows.
• To the extent practical, water is crossed only where a physical crossing (usually a bridge, tunnel, or tramway) is available.
• There is an attempt to prevent dilution and neutralization of the clout of ethnic groups.

DISTRICT LOCATION	TOTAL POPU- LATION	DEVIATION FROM AVERAGE POPU- LATION	PERCENT HISPANIC	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE WHITE (OF EUROPEAN OR MEDITER- RANEAN ANCESTRY)	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE BLACK (OF AFRICAN ANCESTRY)	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE AMERINDIAN (OF ABORIGINAL AMERICAN ANCESTRY)	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE ASIAN (OF ASIAN ANCESTRY)	GEOGRAPHIC COMPOSITION
Jamaica Bay	2,712,375	-3.62%	19.2%	25.1%	46.1%	0.5%	6.8%	In New Yorkshire state, in Kings county, in New York city, Gateway national recreation area, Marine and Prospect parks, and Brooklyn community districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18; and in Queens county, in New York city, John F. Kennedy International airport, Gateway national recreation area, Forest park, and Queens community districts 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, and 14.
Bronx & Newtown	2,700,206	-4.05%	38.5%	27.2%	19.5%	0.3%	12.1%	In New Yorkshire state, Bronx county; in Queens county, in New York city, Flushing Meadows-Corona park and Queens community districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 11; and in Westchester county, Pelham town and Mount Vernon city.
Newark & Jersey City	2,675,311	-4.94%	21.3%	47.2%	21.1%	0.1%	7.8%	In New Jersey state, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, and Union counties.
Manhattan & Staten Island	2,675,944	-4.91%	22.7%	53.0%	11.3%	0.2%	10.4%	In New Yorkshire state, New York and Richmond counties; and in Kings county, in New York city, Brooklyn community districts 6, 7, 10, 11, and 12.
Paterson & Trenton	2,860,222	+1.63%	12.1%	72.1%	7.4%	0.1%	6.6%	In New Jersey state, Bergen, Hunterdon, Mercer, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, and Warren counties.
Long Island	2,753,913	-2.14%	10.3%	76.4%	8.1%	0.2%	3.5%	In New Yorkshire state, Nassau and Suffolk counties.
South Jersey	2,878,817	+2.30%	7.0%	77.5%	11.1%	0.2%	2.8%	In New Jersey state, Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Monmouth, Ocean, and Salem counties.
Catskills & Yonkers & Bingamton	2,706,112	-3.84%	9.6%	80.4%	7.5%	0.2%	3.2%	In New Yorkshire state, Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Schuyler, Sullivan, Tioga, Tompkins, and Ulster county; and, in Westchester county, New Rochelle, Peekskill, Rye, White Plains, and Yonkers cities and Bedford, Cortlandt, Eastchester, Greenburgh, Harrison, Lewisboro, Mamaroneck, Mount Kisco, Mount Pleasant, New Castle, North Castle, North Salem, Ossining, Pound Ridge, Rye, Scarsdale, Somers, and Yorktown towns.
Western New England	2,802,087	-0.43%	7.8%	81.4%	6.8%	0.2%	2.2%	Vermont state; in Connecticut state, Fairfield, Hartford, Litchfield, and Tolland counties; and in Massachusetts state, Berkshire county.
DISTRICT LOCATION	TOTAL POPU- LATION	DEVIATION FROM AVERAGE POPU- LATION	PERCENT HISPANIC	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE WHITE (OF EUROPEAN OR MEDITER- RANEAN ANCESTRY)	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE BLACK (OF AFRICAN ANCESTRY)	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE AMERINDIAN (OF ABORIGINAL AMERICAN ANCESTRY)	PERCENT NON- HISPANIC SINGLE- RACE ASIAN (OF ASIAN ANCESTRY)	GEOGRAPHIC COMPOSITION