- every two years (all House & 1/3 of Senate)
- House district size determined by census
- House districts organized by state (each state guaranteed at least 1 seat)
- each state has 2 Senators chosen by popular vote of state (16th amend)
- elections organized by states (must meet national criteria) (Article I Section IV)
- territories elect non-voting representatives to House
Qualifications for House / Senate
- minimum 25 yrs old / 30
- US citizen minimum 7 yrs / 9 yrs
- resident of state representing / same
Unofficial qualifications??
Keys to electoral victory
- fundraising
winning a House seat = +$1.4 mil / Senate seat = +$8.5 mil
for more on fundraising & elections that will make you think, watch this TED Talk
- appeal to the base
must be able to win direct primary before general election
- meet unofficial requirements
- ride the coattails if they are available
refer to Table 12-3 on p.415 to examine midterm election results and Presidential coattail effect
- incumbency advantage
refer to Table 12-4 on p.416; roughly 90% retention rate for Congressional seats
Congressional Apportionment
Apportionment - allocation of seats on the House of Reps based on population
Reapportionment
Malapportionment
Redistricting
