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