Congress:is broken into two levels
State and National
SD Senator Tim Johnson
Born in Canton raised and graduated from Vermillion High School
SD Senator John Thune
Born in Pierre raised in Murdo, SD and graduated from Jones Co. High School.
SD House of Representative Kristi Noem
Born in Watertown raised on a farm near Castlewoodand graduated from Hamlin High School
Ours is a Bicameral Congress• The House represents the People
• The number each state has is based on population
• The Senate represents the State• The number each state has is equal (2)
Term + Session + Special Sessions• A Congressional Term is two years
• The 110th Congress Term began in January 2007 and end December of 2008.
• Each Congress has two sessions of one year each.
• The first session of the 110th Congress ended in December 2007.
Special Sessions
• Presidents may call Congress to meet in special sessions.
• A famous special session was held December 8th, 1941.
• Special Sessions are rare today.
The House435 Members
Elected from single member districts Districts average 650,000 people
South Dakota has 1 Districts of 789,919
A states number of districts are based on it’s size in each decennial (10 years) census.
Apportionment & Reapportionment
• The drawing of state Congressional district lines is known as apportionment.
• Gerrymandering is drawing district lines to benefit a political party.
Constitutional Requirements for the House of Representatives
(2 yr term)• 25 years old or older
• Citizen for seven or more years • Resident of the State electing you
• Traditionally, a resident of your district
Constitutional Requirements for the Senate(6 year term)
• 30 years old or older • Citizen for nine or more years • Resident of the State electing you
• Traditionally, a resident of the state, unless named Hillary (NY, DC)
The Senate100 Members
2 Senators per state
Direct Election since the passage of the 17th Amendment to the Constitution
Originally chosen indirectly by state legislatures.
Special Powers of Congress
The House:
-All money bills must begin in the House
-All impeachments begin in the House
-Most House votes require only a simple majority.
The Senate:
- Approves all presidential
appointments. - By a 2/3’s vote:Approves all treaties and serves as
the court in impeachments.
Congress the Job1. Legislator
2. Committee Member
3. Representative of their constituents
4. Servant of their constituents
5. Politician
Salary - $133,600 Allowances: StaffTravel Office Mail
Pay and Allowances
The Average CongressMAN
• Male • Age 50+ • Married
• Two Kids
• College Grad
• Attorney
• Church Goer • Prior Political Experience
• Wealthy
Congress and the Electoral College• The members of both Houses combined is
directly proportional to the electoral college.
Winner take all!
• The controversial system used to elect the President of the United States is called the Electoral College. It is referred to as a “winner take all” system because general if you win the popular vote of the state you get all that states electoral voted (which is based on its number of total congress people). Th win the Presidential election you need 270 of the 525 electoral votes.
Example of each States Representatives
2008 Election
365173
270 electoral votes to wins (69.5m to 59.9 m –Popoular)
2000 Election
Other Close Elections