The US Congress has two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives.Elections for the House of Representatives are held every two years.The tenure of a senator is 06 years, senators are elected from every state.
On November 4, people in 50 states of America not only voted for the post of President but also for the Senate and House of Representatives. These houses of Parliament are so powerful that in many cases they can make even the President of America powerless. That means his power in American politics is tremendous.
In fact, there is always so much noise and bustle about the Presidential Election in America that people forget about the important federal elections for the US Congress. Let us know about them and the elections to be held for them.
What is American Congress?
In fact, the US Congress i.e. the American Parliament is divided into two legislative bodies, just as our Parliament is divided into the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
One is the upper house i.e. the US Senate, which has 100 senators. They reach this level by electing two senators from every American state. Their tenure is of 06 years. In 2024, elections are being held for 34 of these 100 seats.
The lower house of the Congress is called the House of Representatives. In which there are 435 members, their tenure is for two years. This means that on Tuesday America is not voting only to elect the President but for the entire House. There are 6 non-voting seats in it.
According to the states, the seats of the House of Representatives are as follows
– Large states: California (52), Texas (38), Florida (27), New York (27)
– Small states: Alaska (1), Delaware (1), Montana (1), North Dakota (1), South Dakota (1), Vermont (1), Wyoming (1)
The number of representatives in each state may change after each census, as seats are reallocated to districts as population changes.
What is the current situation in the Senate?
In America, every two years, one-third of the Senate seats are elected, i.e. 33-34 seats.
Presently the status of seats is as follows
– Republican Party – 49 seats
– Democratic Party – 47 seats
– Independents who are with the Democrats – 4 seats
How will the terms of one-third of the Senate seats now expire?
First batch – term will end in 2025
Second batch – term will end in 2027
Third batch – term will end in 2029
What is the US Senate?
Number of Members – 100 senators (2 from each of the 50 states)
– The tenure of a senator is for 6 years
– Only two senators are elected from each state
Responsibilities
1. Lawmaking- introducing, debating and voting on bills
2. Advice and Consent – Approving presidential appointments (Supreme Court justices, federal judges, cabinet members)
– The Senate plays an important role in shaping the country’s laws, policies and judiciary, thereby ensuring equal representation for each state.
3. Approving treaties – The President approves the treaties negotiated.
4. Impeachment Trial – To conduct an impeachment trial initiated by the House.
5. Budgeting – approving federal spending and taxation
There are two types of senators
1. Junior Senator – A senator with fewer years of service from a state
2. Senior Senator – A senator with more years of service from a state.
House of Representatives
In the House of Representatives, members from each state are elected proportionally on the basis of the population there. For example, California, America’s most populous state, has the highest number of representatives in this House. Their number is 52. A handful of states like Wyoming and Vermont are represented by only one member in the House. This is the lower house of Congress
Number of members – 435 members
– Each member represents a congressional district within a state
– The number of representatives per state is decided on the basis of population.
– Members serve a tenure of 2 years
Responsibilities
1. Lawmaking: debating, introducing, and voting on bills
2. Budgeting: Approving federal spending and taxation
3. Inspection: Investigating and hearing
4. Impeachment: Initiating impeachment proceedings against federal officials
Sometimes more power than the President
Some members of the US Congress are incredibly influential in both party and policy politics. Sometimes they have more influential powers than even the President.
Who is in control of the Senate now?
Currently, the US Senate is controlled by the Democrats while the House is controlled by the Republicans.
Based on current voting, party control of both houses could change this week. Democrats can hold on to more Senate seats by defending them than their rivals. However, Republicans have more than 60% chance of winning the upper house of Congress. After this week’s elections, Republicans may have 51-52 seats out of 100 Senate seats.
At the same time, estimates about the House of Representatives show that after the election results, the Democrats have more than 70% chance of controlling the House. According to him, Democrats are projected to win 222 seats, while Republicans will get 213 seats.
life of a senator
A Senator generally holds more power than the average individual member of the House, because a Senator represents an entire state while a Representative represents only a district within the state. Representing an entire state, a senator is in most cases responsible for more voters than a House representative.
They spend their entire day meeting voters, discussing policy issues in committee meetings, and making public appearances to get their message across.
Tags: US Election, US elections, US President, US Presidential Election 2024
FIRST PUBLISHED : November 6, 2024, 07:55 IST