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House of Representatives

House of Representatives. Basic Facts. Key Green – Gained Purple – Lost Yellow – no change. State Representation. House of Representative Size. Congress set the size at 435 members State’s representation set by the Census The 435 votes are apportioned Each State has at least one vote

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House of Representatives

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  1. House of Representatives Basic Facts

  2. Key Green – Gained Purple – Lost Yellow – no change State Representation

  3. House of Representative Size • Congress set the size at 435 members • State’s representation set by the Census • The 435 votes are apportioned • Each State has at least one vote • Washington DC, Guam, Virgin Islands, and American Samoa elect a representative with no voting power • Puerto Rico chooses a resident commissioner, also with no vote

  4. Reapportionment • The representation is redistributed after each Census • The original number was set at 65 until a Census could be taken • After the first Census the number was changed to 106. • By 1912 the size was 435 • The House ignored the 1920 Census

  5. States that gained Arizona – 2 Florida – 2 Georgia – 2 Texas – 2 California – 1 Colorado – 1 Nevada – 1 North Carolina - 1 States that lost New York – 2 Pennsylvania – 2 Connecticut – 1 Illinois – 1 Indiana – 1 Michigan – 1 Mississippi – 1 Ohio – 1 Oklahoma – 1 Wisconsin - 1 2003 Apportionment

  6. Reapportionment Act of 1929 • Set the “permanent” size of the House at 435 • The Census Bureau decides the reapportionment after each census • The President then sends this plan to Congress • Each house has 60-days to reject the plan. If neither does, it becomes effective.

  7. Term • Each elected Representative serves a two year term. • There is no limit to how many times they can be elected • John Dingell, Democrat from Michigan, has served the longest. He first took office in 1955 when he took his late father’s seat.

  8. When are they held? First Tuesday after the first Monday in November in even numbered years Off-Year Elections Also known as midterm elections Held in the middle of the Presidential term Usually the party in charge, President’s party, loses seats in this election Congressional Elections

  9. Congress after the 2006 elections

  10. Voting Districts • Single Member District – Congressional District - The voters of each district will elect their own Representative • General Ticket - at large – Since1842 this can only be used for States with one Representative

  11. Gerrymandering • Voting districts drawn to favor one party over the other by including more of that parties members. • Districts may be drawn to concentrate the opposition’s voters in just a few districts leaving the majority vote for their candidates • Districts may be drawn to leave just a few members of the opposition party in each district and keep them from winning

  12. Wesberry v. Sanders: 1964 Wesberry’s Georgia 5th Congressional district was larger than most He sued saying it violated his equal vote based on 14th Amendment Supreme Court agreed and Georgia was forced to redraw its districts. Oyez: Wesberry v. Sanders, 376 U.S. 1 (1964), U.S. Supreme Court Case Summary & Oral Argument Reynolds v. Sims: 1964 Alabama law required one State Senator from each county Some counties had more people Did it violate 14th Amendment equal protection clause? Supreme Court –Alabama law did violate – that districts should be drawn by population Oyez: Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533 (1964), U.S. Supreme Court Case Summary & Oral Argument “One person, one vote”

  13. House of Representatives Qualifications • 25 years old • US citizen for at least seven (7) years • Must be an inhabitant of the State from which he/she is elected • Informal qualification is that they live in the district from which they are elected • Others that can make or break a candidate: party identification, how well known is the name, gender, ethnic characteristics, and political expertise

  14. Challenges • Majority vote to refuse to seat a member-elect • 1900 Brigham Roberts (Utah) because he was a polygamist • 1967 Adam Clayton Powell was denied a seat because he was accused of misappropriating funds– Supreme Court said they must seat him because he met the qualifications

  15. Punish for “disorderly behavior” • Requires a majority vote • 1989: Jim Wright (D) resigned before he could be reprimanded for financial dealings with interest groups • 2006: Tom Delay (R) resigned before he was reprimanded • 1990: Barney Frank (D) was reprimanded for his relationship with a male prostitute – reelected by his constituents • 2006: Mark Foley (R) resigned after it was revealed he sent inappropriate e-mails to a page • 1997: Gerry Eastman Studds (D) Censured by the House of Representatives for having sexual relations with a teenage House page.

  16. Expel a member by a 2/3 vote Five members have been expelled from the House • three of them were removed in 1861 for supporting the Confederate States' secession, which led to the Civil War. • In 1980, Michael Myers (D) was expelled for accepting bribes (376 to 30) • In 2002 James Traficant (D) was expelled following his conviction for taking bribes, filing false tax returns, racketeering, and forcing his aides to perform chores at his farm in Ohio and on his houseboat in Washington DC, and is currently serving out an 8-year prison term scheduled to end in 2010..

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