Southern states to gain seats after 2010 census

The 2008 election will hopefully prove to be a very interesting election cycle indeed. For the first time in decades the party candidates show signs of not being decided until the conventions. But that's only the first step in a rapidly changing election environment. The 2012 elections will be an even greater change from politics as usual. Shifting populations and demographics will change the landscape even further.

Fast-growing Southern states could gain nine new congressional seats after the 2010 census, largely at the expense of their neighbors to the north, judging from the latest government data.

Georgia and North Carolina's delegations in the U.S. House would overtake New Jersey's, for example, while Florida would catch up with New York, according to projections based on a July 2007 population snapshot released by the Census Bureau last month.

Texas would be the biggest gainer, while a handful of Western states such as Arizona and Nevada also could grab new seats.

As Americas population shift south away from the north east and great lakes regions - will red states turn blue? Or will the stay red and just have more electoral power and political sway? Only time will tell.