Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway launched a lawsuit Friday against the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) for counting illegal aliens in the U.S. Census.
“The State of Missouri and its voters can no longer ignore the ongoing denial of their right to self-government and fair representation,” Attorney General Hanaway said.
“United States citizens and lawful permanent residents have a right to representation, unlike illegal aliens and temporary visa holders.
“In America, the People, the members of the social compact, are the only legitimate source of the government’s power. We are taking a stand against those who are cheating our system.”
The filing in U.S. District Court demands a recount of the 2020 Census and an injunction to prevent illegal aliens from influencing the 2030 count.
The complaint says Missouri would have gained an additional congressional seat and an Electoral College vote after the 2020 Census if only citizens and legal permanent residents were counted.
The lawsuit traces the root of the problem to the Carter Administration, which founded the policy to include illegal aliens in the population count used to assign seats in congress.
The Trump Administration attempted to correct this in July 2020 by issuing a memorandum to exclude illegal aliens from the count but President Biden reversed it.
The lawsuit claims counting illegal aliens violates the 14th Amendment because the Constitution’s instruction to count the “whole number of persons” refers only to citizens.
The AG is seeking a court order compelling the Census Bureau to remove illegals tallied in 2020 and from future counts.
Missouri’s Republican leadership are uniting behind the lawsuit, framing it as a common-sense defense of national sovereignty.
“It’s a no brainer…only U.S. citizens should count in the census,” said Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins on X.
“When sanctuary states count illegal immigrants in their census numbers, it gives those states extra congressional seats vs. those states that don’t count illegal immigrants in their census numbers.”
It’s a no brainer…only U.S. citizens should count in the census. When sanctuary states count illegal immigrants in their census numbers, it gives those states extra congressional seats vs. those states that don’t count illegal immigrants in their census numbers. https://t.co/apVAzB2nHx
— Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, CPA (@DLHoskins) January 30, 2026
Governor Mike Kehoe praised Hanaway on X for challenging the “clear flaw” in federal policy. “United States citizens, not illegal aliens, hold a fundamental right to representation in government,” he said.
Thank you to Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway for taking a stand against this clear flaw in federal census policy.
United States citizens, not illegal aliens, hold a fundamental right to representation in government.
The State of Missouri is leading this historic… https://t.co/nYKtOGhtfV
— Governor Mike Kehoe (@GovMikeKehoe) January 30, 2026
The Missouri Freedom Caucus was even more blunt about the motivations behind the open-border policies of the Left.
“This is another reason leftwing radicals have left the borders open and shipped these illegals to democrat led states,” the Caucus stated on X, noting that these states have otherwise been “bleeding population for years.”
This is common sense. Illegal immigrants should NOT be counted in the census. This is another reason leftwing radicals have left the borders open and shipped these illegals to democrat led states to at have been bleeding population for years https://t.co/RUmafwhdXd
— Missouri Freedom Caucus (@MOFreedomCaucus) January 30, 2026
