(AP) -- South Carolina legislators have spent more than $400,000 in their efforts to redraw district lines.

State legislatures have to redraw district lines every 10 years to balance out population in legislative and U.S. house districts.

The big prize this year is mapping a new seventh U.S. house district for the state. Area political leaders are pushing for Horry County to be at the center of the newly drawn district. But legislators will also be fighting over how their own district lines are drawn. 

Legislators won't be able to do any of that in earnest until later this week. That's when the U.S. Census Bureau plans to  releases detailed demographic information showing where the state's population has grown.

During the past two years, the house and senate have spent at least $409,377 preparing to draw district maps.

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