Grab your writing journals, put today’s date and answer the following question:

Aside from the qualifications set by the Constitution, what do you think it takes to be elected to the House or the Senate? What skills, personality traits do you think it is important to have?

ROAD THROUGH CONGRESS

Who remembers the qualifications for the House and the Senate?

IF I WANTED TO RUN FOR OFFICE, WHAT WOULD I NEED? What are the qualifications for the House of

Representatives and the Senate?

House of Representatives (435 members) 25 years old 7 years a citizen Must be a resident of the state you represent 2 year terms

Senate (100 members) 30 years old 9 years a citizen Must be a resident of the state you represent 6 year terms

IT ALL STARTS WITH… The Census!

What is the census? A population count taken every 10 years Usually around April

Once a census has been taken, it can be determined how many representatives each state gets

This is called reapportionment Only happens for the HoR!!!!

Senate automatically gets 2 senators from each state

Depending on population growth, states may gain or lose representatives

Once the Census results come back, state legislatures can redraw congressional district lines Called redistrictingEach district is supposed to represent

roughly 646,000 people

Sometimes states will draw congressional district lines in funny ways to help the majority party gain an advantage

This is called gerrymanderingFrom Governor Elbridge Gerry

KENTUCKY

Any thoughts on Kentucky’s districts?

KY 3

KY 4

Let’s practice!

HR ELECTIONS HR elections happen every 2 years, so

all 435 members must be elected/reelected every 2 years Great continuity howeverOnly group of people that have to beg the

public for their jobs every 2 years!

SENATE ELECTIONS According to the Constitution, another

way the Senate is the superior house is through their elections (Article I, Section 3, Clause 2)

Senate is divided into thirds (33-33-34)Every two years, one third of the Senate

has electionsThis way, not all 100 members are being

replaced every 2 years

WRITING JOURNALS Why do you think there is so much

continuity in Congress? Why do you think nearly 80-90% of incumbents get reelected? Think of at least 2-3 factors

MAKE UP OF 2013 CONGRESS

There are also 6 non-voting members in HR: 1 from DC,

Guam, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico

ONCE YOU’RE IN CONGRESS, NOW WHAT? Congress MUST meet at least once a

year (January 3) according to which amendment?

Usually terms end around November (lame duck period)

ONCE YOU’RE IN CONGRESS, NOW WHAT? Congress is divided into terms Terms last every 2 years

Sessions are each year of that Term So 2 sessions per 1 term

PERKS TO CONGRESS Salary

Congress earns $174,000/year More for leadership position

e.g. SOH earns $223,500Remember the 27th Amendment In 1993 Congress made $133,600 (shows

inflation!)

PERKS Members of Congress enjoy other perks

such as franking privileges Stationary, free postage on official business to

constituents Allowances for:

Office staff All trips to their home state Tax deductions for two homes

Retirement: they receive a pension; average $41-55,000 Must have served at least 5 years

Takes into account age and years served

PERKS TO CONGRESS They are free from arrest “in all cases

except treason, felony, or breach of the peace” while attending or traveling to and fro

They cannot be sued for anything said on the floor

WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY DO SOMETHING HORRIBLE? In January 2013, the popularity of

Congress reached an all-time low, with just 9% of registered voters approving of its performance and 85% disapproving. Voters preferred root canals, colonoscopies, traffic jams, Genghis Khan and cockroaches to Congress, but preferred Congress to the Kardashians, North Korea, the ebola virus, Lindsay Lohan, Fidel Castro, meth labs, communism and gonorrhea.[

WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY DO SOMETHING HORRIBLE? Censure

The formal statement of disapproval Requires majority voteHappened 23 times in the House, 9 in the

SenateMust stand there while SOH reads list of

charges Form of public shaming

THE CENSURE OF SENATOR JOSEPH MCCARTHY http://

blowthetrumpet.org/CENSUREOFSENATORJOSEPHMCCARTHY.htm

WHAT HAPPENS IF THEY DO SOMETHING HORRIBLE? Expulsion

Kicked out of officeOnly happened 15 times in Senate, 4 in

HouseRequires 2/3 vote to expel

KENTUCKY Senator John C. Breckinridge was

expelled (1861) Representative Henry C. Burnett was

expelled (1861) Representative Lovell Rousseau was

censured (1866) Representative John Y. Brown was

censured (1866)