1. The House of Representatives
Unit 5: Notes #1
Ch. 10.2
5/8/14

2. Size and Terms There are currently 435 members of the House
This number is set by Congress
Seats in the House are apportioned among states based on their population
Every state gets at least one seat
Alaska, Delaware, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont & Wyoming only have one seat
The District of Columbia, Guam, the Virgin Islands and America Samoa each elect a delegate
Puerto Rico chooses a resident commissioner
House Reps serve two year terms

3. Reapportionment
Article I directs Congress to reapportion the seats in the House after each census (every 10 years)
The Reapportionment Act of 1929
Created “permanent” size of the House to 435
Each seat represents about 650,000 persons
The Census Bureau is to determine the number of seats each state should have
President send Bureau plan to Congress
If neither house rejects the plan it goes in effect in 60 days

4. Congressional Elections
Since 1872, Congress has required that elections be held on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of each even numbered year
Alaska could have theirs in October, but choose to use the Nov date
Elections that occur between presidential elections are called off-year elections
Usually the party in power loses seats in off-year elections

5. Districts
The 435 members of the House each represent a congressional district
States follow a single-member district arrangement
General Ticket elections were done away with in 1842
The 1842 law made each state responsible for drawing congressional districts within their state
It required the districts be made up on contiguous territory (all one piece)
In 1872 Congress added that district have about the same number of inhabitants
In 1901 Congress directed that all district be of “compact territory” (small area)

6. Gerrymandering
Districts that have been gerrymandered have been drawn to the advantage of the political party that controls the State’s Legislature
Gerrymandering takes one of two forms:
Lines are drawn to concentrate the opposition’s voter’s in one or a few districts
Lines are drawn to spread opposition as thinly as possible among several districts
Gerrymandering got its name from Governor Eldridge Gerry of Massachusetts who in 1812 drew districts to favor the Dem-Rep

7. Qualifications Formal Qualifications
Must be at least 25
Must have been a citizen for at least 7 years
Must live in the state they are elected from
Should live in the district as well (custom)
The Constitution makes the House “the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its Own Members”
Informal Qualifications
Party Identification, name familiarity, gender, ethnic characteristics and political experience