[Gordo]

Originally Posted by 10023

In terms of shifting the balance of power politically, you've got to remember that while these shifts mean that Republican states are gaining population and political clout, they're also becoming less Republican. The growth is coming from Northern transplants, immigrants, and minorities that lean Democratic.

So this trend only provides a tailwind for the GOP until the demographics reach the magical tipping point where the "newcomers" become a plurality, at which point these states will flip entirely. Look at Virginia and North Carolina in the last election... all that growth in NoVA and Charlotte looks like it helps the Repubs, but longer term, it doesn't really.

To some degree, sure. Many of these states currently are completely Republican-controlled at the state congress/governor level though, so you can bet that there will be some serious gerrymandering of any new/re-drawn districts to make sure that the effects of states becoming less Republican are minimized for years and years beyond what population shifts would indicate (Democrats do the same, of course).