18.1 - US Congress: The Structure of Congress Flashcards
18.1 - the structure of congress
chapter 18.1
What does bicameral mean?
A legislature made up of two chambers
What did the House of Representatives represent, which the Senate was a safeguard against?
Popular sovereignty
What made the Senate an elected chamber and when?
The 17th Amendment in 1913
Why was the Senate made an elected chamber?
Growing concernss regarding the power of big industrial monopolies to control state legislatures in the appointment of senators
What big company at the time was known for trying to gain influence in the White House?
The Standard Oil Company, founded by John D.Rockefeller in 1870
What was the salary for members of the 115th Congress?
$174,000 annually
Membership of Congress:
How many congressmen and congresswomen are there in the House?
435
How many states have only one member in the House and how many members does California have?
- Seven states have only one member
- California has 53 members
How many senators and House members were there in the 1st Congress?
26 senators and 65 House members
What Act sets the number of members in the House of Representatives at 435?
The Apportionment Act 1911
How many people does one House member represent on average?
750,000
The election cycle:
How often are congressional election?
Every 2 years
What do all federal government elections use?
First-past-the-post
What was the outcome in the 1994 midterm elections?
Democrats lost both the House and Senate to the Republicans
What was the outcome in the 2018 midterm elections?
Republicans lost the House to the Democrats and held the Senate
The significance of incumbency:
What was the average cost of winning a Senate seat in 2016?
$10.4 million
How much did it cost to win a seat in the House of Representatives in 2016?
Over $1 million
How much did incumbents in the Senate raise on average in 2016 and how much did challengers raise?
Incumbents - $12,708,000
Challengers - $1,600,000
What are incumbents given by their house?
Their own website
What are ‘franking privileges’?
The costs of mailing to constituents is provided by Congress
How much did Congress spend on mail in 2012?
$24.8 million
What was the House incumbency rate in the 115th Congress?
97%
What was the Senate incumbency rate in the 115th Congress?
93%
What was the incumbency rate across both houses in the 2022 midterms? (117th Congress)
98%
Senate Elections:
What meant that senators sit 6-year terms?
The 17th Amendment in 1913
What Class in the Senate was up for election in the 2022 midterms?
Class III - 34 seats
The impact of the election cycle:
What is there a high chance of since seats in both houses are up for election every two years?
Divided government
What does a divided government mean?
The control of Congress and the presidency, or the two houses of Congress, is split between two parties
Between 1901 and 1969, how much of the time was the government divided?
21%
Between 1969 and 2019, how much of the time was the government divided?
72%
