California sees first population decline in its history, but remains largest state

For the first time in its recorded history, California lost population in the most recent national census, according to state officials. The news comes days after the U.S. Census Bureau said the Golden State would lose a congressional seat in the House of Representatives for the first time because it grew more slowly than other states.

While still the nation’s most populous state and far ahead of Texas, Florida and New York, California’s population dropped by 182,000 from 2019 to 39.5 million in 2020, according to the state Department of Finance. It is the first yearly loss for the Golden State ever recorded, stalling a growth streak that dates to California’s joining the Union in 1850.