Some of the 2010 census data was just released today at 11:00 AM EST, revealing the official population count and changes to congressional apportionments for each state. The 2010 Census is the 23rd census in United States history, and is mandated once every ten years according to Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution.

According to the data, as of April 1, 2010 the resident population of the United States was 308,745,538. This figure is a 9.7% increase over the resident population during the 2000 Census. Of the four regions that comprise the United States, the South saw the greatest population increase with an additional 14,318,924 people, followed by the West with 8,747,621, the Midwest with 2,534,225, and the Northeast with 1,722,862 people.



The most populous state is still California. And although Texas claims the greatest numerical population growth with an increase of 4,293,741 people, Nevada takes the prize for growing the most proportionally. Nevada’s population grew by 35.1% to reach a current population of 2,700,551.

Only one state lost population since the 2000 Census: Michigan. Besides Michigan, Puerto Rico also saw a decrease in population.

The population changes affect the apportioning of seats to each state for the US Congress. Texas will gain four seats, Florida two, and one new seat each will be given to Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah, and Washington. Ohio and New York both lost two seats, while Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania each lost one. This new apportion of congressional seats will also affect the number of seats allocated to each state in the Electoral College, which analysts say will likely modify the strongholds of both the Republicans and the Democrats in the next national elections.