The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both meet in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Members of Congress are chosen through direct election, though vacancies in the Senate may be filled by a governor's appointment. Congress has a total of 535 voting members: 100 senators and 435 representatives. The House of Representatives also has 6 additional non-voting members. The vice president of the United States, as president of the Senate, has a vote in the Senate only when there is a tie.
Congresses convene for two-year terms (a Congress), commencing every other January. Each Congress is usually split into two sessions, one for each year. Elections are held every even-numbered year on Election Day. The members of the House of Representatives are elected for the two-year term of a Congress. The Reapportionment Act of 1929 established that there be 435 representatives, and the Uniform Congressional District Act requires that they be elected from single-member constituencies or districts. It is also required that the congressional districts be apportioned among states by population every ten years using the U.S. census results, provided that each state has at least one congressional representative. Each senator is elected at-large in their state for a six-year term, with terms staggered, so every two years approximately one-third of the Senate is up for election. Each state, regardless of population or size, has two senators, so currently, there are 100 senators for the 50 states.
Article One of the Constitution requires that members of Congress be at least 25 years old for the House and at least 30 years old for the Senate, be a U.S. citizen for seven years for the House and nine years for the Senate, and be an inhabitant of the state which they represent. Members in both chambers may stand for an unlimited number of times.
Congress was created by the Constitution's First Article and first met in 1789, replacing the Congress of the Confederation in its legislative function. Although not legally mandated, in practice members of Congress since the late 19th century are typically affiliated with one of the two major parties, the Democratic Party or the Republican Party, and only rarely with a third party or independents affiliated with no party. Members can also switch parties at any time, though this is uncommon.
Overview
Article One of the United States Constitution states, "All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives." The House and Senate are equal partners in the legislative processlegislation cannot be enacted without the consent of both chambers. The Constitution grants each chamber some unique powers. The Senate approves treaties and presidential appointments while the House initiates revenue-raising bills.
The House initiates and decides impeachment while the Senate votes on conviction and removal of office for impeachment cases. A two-thirds vote of the Senate is required before an impeached person can be removed from office.
The term Congress can also refer to a particular meeting of the legislature. A Congress covers two years; the current one, the 119th Congress, began on January 3, 2025, and will end on January 3, 2027. Since the adoption of the Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the Congress has started and ended at noon on the third day of January of every odd-numbered year. Members of the Senate are referred to as senators, while members of the House of Representatives are commonly referred to as representatives, congressmen, or congresswomen.
Congress provides both local representation of congressional districts by representatives and representation of states at-large by senators.
Scholar and representative Lee H. Hamilton asserted that the "historic mission of Congress has been to maintain freedom" and insisted it was a "driving force in American government" and a "remarkably resilient institution". Congress is the "heart and soul of our democracy", according to this view, even though legislators rarely achieve the prestige or name recognition of presidents or Supreme Court justices; one wrote that "legislators remain ghosts in America's historical imagination." One analyst argues that it is not a solely reactive institution but has played an active role in shaping government policy and is extraordinarily sensitive to public pressure. Several academics described Congress:
Congress is constantly changing and is constantly in flux. In recent times, the American South and West have gained House seats according to demographic changes recorded by the census and includes more women and minorities. Most incumbents seek re-election, and their historical likelihood of winning subsequent elections exceeds 90 percent.
While power balances among the different parts of government continue to change, the internal structure of Congress is important to understand along with its interactions with so-called intermediary institutions such as political parties, civic associations, interest groups, and the mass media.
The historical records of the House of Representatives and the Senate are maintained by the Center for Legislative Archives, which is a part of the National Archives and Records Administration.
Congress holds legislative authority over the District of Columbia, as the current seat of the federal government. Despite the devolution of certain roles to municipal government, under the Home Rule Act, Congress has the power to 'review and disapprove' local laws before they take effect.
History
18th century
The First Continental Congress was a gathering of representatives from twelve of the Thirteen Colonies. On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, referring to the new nation as the "United States of America". The Articles of Confederation in 1781 created the Congress of the Confederation, a unicameral body with equal representation among the states in which each state had a veto over most decisions. Congress had executive but not legislative authority, and the federal judiciary was confined to admiralty*** and lacked authority to collect taxes, regulate commerce, or enforce laws.English (2003), pp. 5–6.Collier (1986), p. 5.
Government powerlessness led to the Convention of 1787 which proposed a revised constitution with a two-chamber or bicameral Congress. Smaller states argued for equal representation for each state. The two-chamber structure had functioned well in state governments. A compromise plan, the Connecticut Compromise, was adopted with representatives chosen by population (benefiting larger states) and exactly two senators chosen by state governments (benefiting smaller states).
The ratified constitution created a federal structure with two overlapping power centers so that each citizen as an individual is subject to the powers of state government and national government.English (2003), p. 7. To protect against abuse of power, each branch of governmentexecutive, legislative, and judicialhad a separate sphere of authority and could check other branches according to the principle of the separation of powers. Furthermore, there were checks and balances within the legislature since there were two separate chambers.English (2003), p. 8. The new government became active in 1789.
Political scientist Julian E. Zelizer suggested there were four main congressional eras, with considerable overlap, and included the formative era (1780s–1820s), the partisan era (1830s–1900s), the committee era (1910s–1960s), and the contemporary era (1970–present).
Federalists and anti-federalists jostled for power in the early years as political parties became pronounced. With the passage of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the anti-federalist movement was exhausted. Some activists joined the Anti-Administration Party that James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were forming about 1790–1791 to oppose policies of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton; it soon became the Democratic-Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party and thus began the era of the First Party System.
19th century In 1800, Thomas Jefferson's election to the presidency marked a peaceful transition of power between the parties. John Marshall, 4th chief justice of the Supreme Court, empowered the courts by establishing the principle of judicial review in law in the landmark case Marbury v. Madison in 1803, effectively giving the Supreme Court a power to nullify congressional legislation.
The Civil War, which lasted from 1861 to 1865, resolved the slavery issue and unified the nation under federal authority but weakened the power of states' rights. The Gilded Age (1877–1901) was marked by Republican dominance of Congress. During this time, lobbying activity became more intense, particularly during the administration of President Ulysses S. Grant in which influential lobbies advocated for railroad subsidies and tariffs on wool.Margaret S. Thompson, The "Spider Web": Congress and Lobbying in the Age of Grant (1985) Immigration and high birth rates swelled the ranks of citizens and the nation grew at a rapid pace. The Progressive Era was characterized by strong party leadership in both houses of Congress and calls for reform; sometimes reformers said lobbyists corrupted politics.Elisabeth S. Clemens, The People's Lobby: Organizational Innovation and the Rise of Interest-Group Politics in the United States, 1890–1925 (1997) The position of Speaker of the House became extremely powerful under leaders such as Thomas Reed in 1890 and Joseph Gurney Cannon.
20th century
By the beginning of the 20th century, party structures and leadership emerged as key organizers of Senate proceedings.
A system of seniority, in which long-time members of Congress gained more and more power, encouraged politicians of both parties to seek long terms. Committee chairmen remained influential in both houses until the reforms of the 1970s.
Important structural changes included the direct popular election of senators according to the Seventeenth Amendment, ratified on April 8, 1913. Supreme Court decisions based on the Constitution's commerce clause expanded congressional power to regulate the economy. One effect of popular election of senators was to reduce the difference between the House and Senate in terms of their link to the electorate. Lame duck reforms according to the Twentieth Amendment reduced the power of defeated and retiring members of Congress to wield influence despite their lack of accountability.
The Great Depression ushered in President Franklin Roosevelt and strong control by Democrats and historic New Deal policies. Roosevelt's election in 1932 marked a shift in government power towards the executive branch. Numerous New Deal initiatives came from the White House rather than being initiated by Congress.English (2003), p. 14. President Roosevelt pushed his agenda in Congress by detailing Executive Branch staff to friendly Senate committees, a practice that ended with the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946.
The Democratic Party controlled both houses of Congress for many years. During this time, Republicans and conservative southern Democrats formed the Conservative Coalition. Democrats maintained control of Congress during World War II. Congress struggled with efficiency in the postwar era partly by reducing the number of standing congressional committees.