By Phil Kabler, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — With a population loss of 3.2% over the past decade — the highest of any state in the nation — U.S. Census officials confirmed Monday what most had expected: West Virginia will lose a seat in the House of Representatives in the 2022 election.
During a news conference on 2020 Census Apportionment, U.S Census officials said West Virginia is one of seven states to lose a congressional seat, along with California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
West Virginia was one of three states to lose population from 2010 to 2020. During that time, U.S. population growth slowed to 7.4%, the slowest decade for population growth since 1930 to 1940, during the Great Depression, according to Census officials.
Population loss was negligible in the other states, with Mississippi losing 0.2% of its population, while Illinois lost 0.1%.
Utah was the fastest-growing state, increasing its population by 18.4%.
According to the census data, West Virginia’s population dropped by 59,278 in the past decade, falling to a total population of 1,793,716…