After an extended process, newly released 2020 Census results reveal that the Bay Area’s population is on the rise and is being fueled by Asian and Latino population growth.
In Santa Clara County, residents achieved a 77.7 percent self-response rate for the 2020 Census, exceeding the amount of responses the county received in 2010, and making it one of the highest responding counties in the country.
These newly released numbers will be the foundation for redrawing new boundaries for local, state and federal electoral districts beginning in 2022.
Nicholas Jones, director and senior advisor for race and ethnicity research and outreach at the Census Bureau stated that this new data “yields a more accurate portrait of how people self-identify….revealing that the U.S. population is much more multiracial and more diverse than we measured in the past.”
According to the data, Santa Clara County was one of the fastest growing counties in California over the past decade, growing to a total of 1,936,259, an 8.7 percent increase. The county is the fifth-fastest-growing among the state’s top 10 counties in population.
Among Bay Area counties, Santa Clara County saw the largest jump in its Asian population. The population grew from 31.7% in 2010 to 39% in 2020, making it the most dominant ethnic group in the county.
For the first time in history, both in Santa Clara County, in California, and across the country, the percentage of White residents has declined. In Santa Clara County, the percentage of White residents fell nearly seven percent, from 35.2% in 2010 to 28.7% in 2020.
The population of Latino and Hispanic residents also grew in the majority of Bay Area counties, although Santa Clara County saw a slight decline from 26.9% in 2010 to 25.5% in 2020.
Below is data that shows the comparison between 2010 and 2020 census results for Santa Clara County:
- Population: 2010 = 1,781,642, 2020 = 1,936,259
- Asian: 2010 = 31.7%, 2020 = 38.9%
- White: 2010 = 35.2%, 2020 = 28.7%
- Hispanic: 2010 = 26.9%, 2020 = 25.5%
- Multiracial: 2010 = 3%, 2020 = 4%
- Black: 2010 = 2.4%, 2020 = 2.2%
- American Indian: 2010 = 0.2%, 2020 = 0.2%
- Pacific Islander: 2010 = 0.4%, 2020 = 0.3%
The Census also revealed that Santa Clara County had the third highest percentage of growth in housing units in the state, adding more than 56,000 units within the last decade.