Legislative Branch

Bicameral-Two Houses of Congress Senate-(originally meant to be the body that represented the states) Each state gets two Senators regardless size or population House of Representatives-House of the people Each state gets a number of representatives based on population Each state is guaranteed at least one representative

House of Representatives 435 Voting Members 5 non voting members for: Washington D.C. Puerto Rico Guam American Samoa U.S. Virgin Islands Qualifications 25 Yrs Old Citizen for 7 Years Legal resident of the state they represent 2yr terms

House of Representatives Leadership Speaker of the House (elected by congress)Paul Ryan Majority Leader (elected by the majority party) Kevin McCarthy Majority Whip (Appointed by speaker) Steve Scalise Minority Leader (elected by the minority party) Nancy Pelosi Minority Whip (Appointed by minority leader) Steny Hoyer

House of Representatives distribution Congress added new representatives with every new state until 1913 when the capped the size of the House at 435 Temporary increases with the addition of Alaska and Hawaii one each

Representation in the House

Ohio’s Districts

Ohio’s Old Districting

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcUDBgYodIE

Senate 100 Members Qualifications: 2 per state 30 yrs old Must be citizen for 9 year Legal Resident of the State they represent Elected to 6 year terms Senate is split into thirds for voting purposes so that no more than 1/3 of the senate is up for reelection in any given year.

Senate Leadership President of the Senate: Vice President of the United States (Votes only in a tie, the position is now largely ceremonial) Joe Biden President Pro Tempore (Orin Hatch) Presides when the VP isn’t there (Which is nearly always) Elected from the majority party (Usually is the longest serving member of that party) Majority Leader- Mitch McConnell Majority Whip-John Comyn Minority Leader- Harry Reid Minority Whip-Richard Durbin

The Filibuster Senatorial Procedure used to delay or prevent a vote on a bill If a Senator doesn’t want a bill to become law they just continue to talk about it As long as a Senator has the floor (is speaking) no one can interrupt them without their permission So as long as they can talk (about anything they want) no one else can propose a vote Longest filibuster was 24 hrs 18 minutes 3/5’s of senators can vote to shut up another senator (end the filibuster)60

Congressional Salary and Benefits Congress sets their own salary (174,000$) Leadership positions get a bit more 27th Amendment prevents Congress from giving themselves a raise without allowing an election first. This allows the people to vote out their congressman if they don’t agree with the pay raise Benefits: Free: Office supplies, stationary, postage, office, staff, gym Allowances for travel and other expenses Pension (retirement) plan