Donald Trump has caused concern with his latest announcement, with people left worried about the repercussions and the wider impact this move will have.

POTUS is known for using Truth Social to share things, whether that’s squabbling with Russian former presidents, or talking about the Epstein files.

He has also placed a major focus and crackdown on immigration and there has been a large backlash against the efforts of ICE to remove people.

When he’s not busy ‘just taking a little walk’ on the roof of the White House, the President has been sharing his latest plans online.

Now, he’s uploaded a post which could have a major impact on thousands of people in the US, and one critic has called the move ‘sickening’ as they worry about the results it will cause.

Donald Trump has made a new announcement on Truth Social which has ruffled feathers (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Trump wrote: “I have instructed our Department of Commerce to immediately begin work on a new and highly accurate CENSUS based on modern day facts and figures and, importantly, using the results and information gained from the Presidential Election of 2024.”

He added: “People who are in our Country illegally WILL NOT BE COUNTED IN THE CENSUS. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Why do Trump’s proposed changes to the census matter?

The US census is mandated by the constitution, and has been carried out every decade since 1970.

The Census Bureau are given the job of counting every US resident, both citizens and non citizens.

Changes to the way the census is carried out can have a number of far-reaching consequences.

Changing the census could influence elections

The data collected by the census is used to work out how many seats a state receives in the US House of Representatives.

Speaking to NPR, John Bisognano, president of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee said: “What’s he’s trying to do is completely reshape the American electorate. He wants to make people who voted for him and look like him more representative with more power and a bigger vote share.”

Interesting, if undocumented migrants were excluded, the impact would be felt across both red, blue and swing states during elections.

According to the Pew Research Center, if only legal US citizens were counted in the 2020 election, California, Florida and Texas would have lost one congressional seat and Electoral College vote each, while Alabama, Minnesota and Ohio would have gained one.

Changing the census could change how federal funding is allocated

Census data is also used to calculate the amount of funding different states receive, along with being used for things like infrastructure planning.

Critics are saying the census is protected by the constitution so Trump’s idea won’t work (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Bisognano said: “The things that you would see in a census like he’s proposed would probably be dramatic drops in federal funding to places like Texas and Florida.

“You would see pretty incredible changes to the ways moneys are allocated.”

The latest census was carried out back in 2020.

It calculated the US population to be 331,449,281, however, it does not specify how many people are in the country illegally.

According to the Pew Research Centre, in 2022 there was believed to be 11 million undocumented people in the US, which is down from the peak of 12.2 million in 2007.

Reacting to Trump’s post, one person wrote: “I extensively use census data in my job. I figured it was only a matter of time before he came for it. This is infuriating and sickening.”

“Someone tell mister efficiency a census costs ten billion dollars,” added another.

“I’m not opening my door to a census worker,” insisted one.

“The logistics on this takes a years of this and even then has to go through congress to approve,” reassured a Reddit user. “They are just going to fudge the numbers then send it off to congress where even Republicans won’t touch this. Release the Epstein files my dude it’s just easier at this point.”

Not everyone thought it was a bad idea though, with one commenter on X (formerly Twitter) wrote: “A new census count for now going forward with ONLY US citizens is essential. Glad they are moving forward with it,” as another added: “Protecting elections means counting only citizens. This bill strengthens fairness and voter integrity.”