A newly released analysis of the 2020 U.S. census marks a major milestone for Native Hawaiians. For the first time, Native Hawaiians living in the continental U.S. outnumber those living in Hawaii.
The total population of Native Hawaiians increased, too. The last U.S. Census, in 2010, counted 527,077. The 2020 census counted 680,442.
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“Less than half of the Native Hawaiian alone or in any combination population lived in Hawaii (46.7%) in 2020, down from 55.0% in 2010,” the report says. That means 53%, or about 360,000, of Native Hawaiians are living in other states.
Next to Hawaii, California holds the second-largest population of Native Hawaiians at 14%, followed by Washington at 4.6%, Nevada at 3.9% and Texas at 3.4%. Among those four continental states, the population grew the most in Texas, up from 2.5% in 2010, but actually decreased in California, down from 14.2%.
Hawaii’s high cost of living and affordable housing crisis are two of the main reasons why people leave the islands. “Our cost of living is the highest in the country at nearly twice the national average,” Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said in his January State of the State address.
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