MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Minnesota will keep all eight of its U.S. House seats based on the newest U.S. Census count.

The 2010 Census reports Tuesday that Minnesota's population is up 7.4 percent over the 4.9 million Minnesotans counted 10 years ago. That's slower than the nation as a whole, which grew 9.7 percent.

Every 10 years, the bureau releases population figures that are used to distribute the 435 seats in the U.S. House. Fast-growing states tend to pick up seats at the expense of those growing more slowly.

Demographers say Minnesota was on the edge of losing a seat for the first time since 1960 as the nation's population continues to shift south and west.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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