Structure of Congress Flashcards
The Senate
The Senate has 100 members called Senators
There are 2 Senators per state, totalling 100.
There is a term length of 6 years with 1/3 of Senators up for election every 2 years. Senior figures are the President of the Senate who is the Vice President, the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader. Before the 2018 midterms, there were 51 Republicans, 47 Democrats, and 2 Independents.
House of Representatives
The House has 435 members called Congressmen/Congresswomen. A Congressperson represents districts based on population size. The smallest number of Congresspeople per state is 1 (for example Alaska), the largest is currently California with 52. Members are elected every 2 years - in Presidential election years, and two years after those. Senior figures are the Speaker, the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader.
Membership of the House of Representatives
Members of the House must be at least 25 years old and have been a citizen for at least the past seven years. There are 435 voting members and six non-voting members. The non-voting members are representatives for Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, the District of Columbia, the US Virgin Islands and Guam. These members can sit in committees and introduce legislation.
Membership of the Senate
Members of the Senate must be at least 30 years old and have been a citizen for at least the last nine years. There are 100 Members of the Senate. Members of both houses must live in the state that they wish to represent at the time of the election.