Early projections for the 2020 census didn’t line up with the actual population count for the booming Sun Belt. Now demographers, community groups and politicians are struggling to find out what was behind the lower-than-expected figures released on Monday. They point to poor investment in outreach in Republican-led states and the possibility of lukewarm participation by Latinos wary of giving their information to the Trump administration. Demographers caution it’s too early to conclude that the nation’s once-a-decade count missed any significant numbers. That won’t be known until data at smaller geographical levels are released and the Census Bureau has finished an accuracy survey.
