Congress Members, Qualifications, and Elections. Congress Members House of Representatives House...

Congress Members, Qualifications, and Elections

Congress Members•House of Representatives• 435 members• Members per state divided based on

population (total is always 435)• Every state is guaranteed one House Representative.• Represent a congressional district

Rep. Suzanne Bomanici,Oregon Congressional District 1

House Representatives represent one congressional district. (therefore, the U.S. has 435 districts).Districts are based on population.

Oregon has 5 congressional districts.

Districts are re-done following every census (every 10 years)

Congress Members•Senate• 100 members• 2 Members Per state•Represent the entire state

Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley (right) and Ron Wyden (left)

Terms and Term Limits• Senators: Elected for 6 year terms.•House Representatives: Elected for 2 year terms.• (more responsive to the desires of their constituents)

•Neither have term limits (can be elected an unlimited amount of times)

Formal Qualifications: House of Representatives

•House of Representatives:• Must be 25 years old• Must have been a United States

citizen for 7 years• Must be residents of the states

in which they are running for election.

Formal Qualifications: Senate•Senate• Must be 30 years old• Must have had U.S. citizenship for 9 years• Must be a resident of the state you are running for

election in.

Informal Qualifications• Experience in politics and public

service• Clean legal background• Access to money for funding

campaign• Personable

Incumbents

• Incumbent: Current occupant of political office.• Significance:• Incumbents have an advantage

in elections.• Experience• Track Record• Easily Recognizable

Constituent• A voting member of a

community

Activity: Running for Congress• You will create a resume and campaign

poster for a prospective candidate running for Congress. • You can create the resume and poster for

yourself *or* a fictional candidate.Include:• Your Qualifications:• Formal (age, citizenship, residency)• Informal (background and experience)

• Stance on a couple issues (think of issues that are relevant to your local community)

• Political Party• Statement on why constituents should vote

for you

Poster:• Striking visual design or color scheme• Slogan or catchphrase