The United States Congress has two chambers, one called the Senate and the other called the House of Representatives (or “House” for short) which share the responsibilities of the legislative process to create federal statutory law. They occupy opposite ends of the Capitol Building. Show
About the SenateThe United States’s 50 states each elect two senators for staggered six-year terms. A senator represents between 0.6 and 40 million people, depending on their state’s population. The day-to-day activities of the Senate are controlled largely by the political party holding the most seats, called the “majority party.” Here is a count of senators by party: Senators by Party
Democrats hold the majority in the Senate because the Vice President, a Democrat, joins them to cast tie-breaking votes when necessary. The District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S.’s four other island territories — American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands — are not represented in the Senate. Tenure of SenatorsThe table below shows a breakdown of how many years the senators have been serving in office. Age and Sex of Senators52% of senators are men over the age of 61, while only 6% of senators are women 61 years old or younger. About the House of RepresentativesThe United States is also divided into 435 congressional districts with a population of about 750,000 each. Each district elects a representative to the House of Representatives for a two-year term. As in the Senate, the day-to-day activities of the House are controlled by the “majority party.” Here is a count of representatives by party: Representatives by Party
The 435 congressional districts do not include the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S.’s four other island territories — American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands — which each send a non-voting delegate to the House. Puerto Rico’s delegate is called the Resident Commissioner. Tenure of RepresentativesThe table below shows a breakdown of how many years the representatives have been serving in office. Age and Sex of Representatives32% of representatives are men over the age of 61, while only 16% of representatives are women 61 years old or younger. The United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the House, is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. Click on the map below to find your state's congressional delegation.http://ballotpedia.org/United_States_congressional_delegations_from_STATE 117th CongressPartisan breakdownThe following chart shows the partisan balance in the House of Representatives.
LeadershipSee also: 117th United States CongressThere are several important leadership positions in the House of Representatives.
Special electionsSee also: Special elections to the 117th United States Congress (2021-2022)Special elections will be held during the 117th Congress to replace members of Congress who leave office for any reason. RepresentativesMembers in the House are called representatives. Each state receives representation in the House in proportion to the size of its population but is entitled to at least one representative. There are currently 435 representatives, a number fixed by law since 1911. The most populous state, California, currently has 52 representatives. There are six states with one representative: Alaska, Delaware, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming.[2] Each representative serves for a two-year term. There are no term limits. QualificationsAccording to the U.S. Constitution, representatives must meet the following requirements:[3]
Additionally, all 50 states maintain requirements related to running for election. These filing requirements vary and can include:
House officersThere are four main house officer positions:
Non-voting membersSee also: United States congressional non-voting membersBesides the representative from each state, there are a small number of delegates and a resident commission.
How has the average age of Congress changed?Test your knowledge of the average age of members of Congress over time. Click "Play" on the widget below to begin. CommitteesThere are 21 regular standing committees and one permanent select committee in the U.S. House. There are also several joint committees with the U.S. Senate. The committees are permanent panels governed by House chamber rules, with responsibility to consider bills and issues and to have general oversight relating to their areas of jurisdiction.[5][6][7]
Joint committees
Elections2022See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 2022Elections to the U.S. House will be held on November 8, 2022. All 435 seats will be up for election. 2020See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 2020Elections to the U.S. House were held on November 3, 2020, and coincide with the 2020 presidential election. All 435 seats were up for election.
2018See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 2018
2016See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 2016Prior to the election, the Republican Party had the majority in the U.S. House. Republicans held 246 seats compared to Democrats' 186 seats, while three seats were vacant. The Republican Party's majority was slightly reduced in 2016, as Democrats picked up six seats.
2014See also: United States House of Representatives elections, 2014 and U.S. House battleground districts, 2014All 435 of the seats in the U.S. House were up for election in 2014. To regain control of the House, Democrats needed a pick-up of 15 seats. Instead, Republicans saw a net gain in seats. According to original analysis by Ballotpedia, only 26 congressional districts were predicted to be competitive in 2014.
2012See also: U.S. House elections, 2012Elections to the U.S. House were held on November 6, 2012. All 435 seats were up for election. In a year where Barack Obama won re-election by 126 electoral votes, the Republican Party maintained their control of the U.S. House, winning 234 seats. The Democrats did make some gains, winning 201 seats. This was up from the 193 seats they held prior to the election. This election marked only the fourth time in 100 years that the party that pulled the most total popular votes nationwide did not win control of the House.[9] AnalysisApportionmentApportionment is the process by which seats in the House of Representatives are divided up among the states.[10] The latest census and apportionment data (2020):[2]
SalaryThe U.S. Census and the Amazing Apportionment Machine As of 2022, most representatives are paid $174,000 per year. Majority and minority leaders receive $193,400, while the Speaker of the House receives $223,500.[12] Some historical facts about the salary of U.S. House members:
Voting with the partyThis section was last updated in 2014. The following data comes from OpenCongress, a website that tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of their party caucus. Democrats:[13]
Republicans:[14]
Net worthSee also: Changes in Net Worth of U.S. Senators and Representatives (Personal Gain Index) and Net worth of United States Senators and RepresentativesThis section was last updated in 2013. The average net worth of members of the Senate, based on data from OpenSecrets.org, is as follows:[15]
Note: Report numbers may reflect incoming and outgoing members of Congress. Current membersAlabamaThe current members of the U.S. House from Alabama are:
AlaskaThe current members of the U.S. House from Alaska are: ArizonaThe current members of the U.S. House from Arizona are:
ArkansasThe current members of the U.S. House from Arkansas are: CaliforniaThe current members of the U.S. House from California are:
ColoradoThe current members of the U.S. House from Colorado are:
ConnecticutThe current members of the U.S. House from Connecticut are:
DelawareThe current members of the U.S. House from Delaware are: FloridaThe current members of the U.S. House from Florida are:
GeorgiaThe current members of the U.S. House from Georgia are:
HawaiiThe current members of the U.S. House from Hawaii are: IdahoThe current members of the U.S. House from Idaho are: IllinoisThe current members of the U.S. House from Illinois are:
IndianaThe current members of the U.S. House from Indiana are:
IowaThe current members of the U.S. House from Iowa are: KansasThe current members of the U.S. House from Kansas are: KentuckyThe current members of the U.S. House from Kentucky are:
LouisianaThe current members of the U.S. House from Louisiana are:
MaineThe current members of the U.S. House from Maine are: MarylandThe current members of the U.S. House from Maryland are:
MassachusettsThe current members of the U.S. House from Massachusetts are:
MichiganThe current members of the U.S. House from Michigan are:
MinnesotaThe current members of the U.S. House from Minnesota are:
MississippiThe current members of the U.S. House from Mississippi are: MissouriThe current members of the U.S. House from Missouri are:
MontanaThe current members of the U.S. House from Montana are: NebraskaThe current members of the U.S. House from Nebraska are: NevadaThe current members of the U.S. House from Nevada are: New HampshireThe current members of the U.S. House from New Hampshire are: New JerseyThe current members of the U.S. House from New Jersey are:
New MexicoThe current members of the U.S. House from New Mexico are: New YorkThe current members of the U.S. House from New York are:
North CarolinaThe current members of the U.S. House from North Carolina are:
North DakotaThe current member of the U.S. House from North Dakota is: OhioThe current members of the U.S. House from Ohio are:
OklahomaThe current members of the U.S. House from Oklahoma are:
OregonThe current members of the U.S. House from Oregon are:
PennsylvaniaThe current members of the U.S. House from Pennsylvania are:
Rhode IslandThe current members of the U.S. House from Rhode Island are: South CarolinaThe current members of the U.S. House from South Carolina are:
South DakotaThe current members of the U.S. House from South Dakota are: TennesseeThe current members of the U.S. House from Tennessee are:
TexasThe current members of the U.S. House from Texas are:
UtahThe current members of the U.S. House from Utah are: VermontThe current members of the U.S. House from Vermont are: VirginiaThe current members of the U.S. House from Virginia are:
WashingtonThe current members of the U.S. House from Washington are:
West VirginiaThe current members of the U.S. House from West Virginia are: WisconsinThe current members of the U.S. House from Wisconsin are:
WyomingThe current members of the U.S. House from Wyoming are: See also
External links
Footnotes
|