Do your Congressmen fit the bill?

Rodney Davis (R) – 13 th District  Taylorville  Married (Shannon) with three children.  43 years old.  1 st Term  Former assistant to Congressman John Shimkus (16 years)  Graduate of Millikin University. Aaron Schock (R) – 18 th District  Peoria  Single  32 years old  3 rd term  Former representative in Illinois General Assembly  Former Peoria District 150 School Board member.  Peoria Richwoods and Bradley University graduate.

Dick Durbin (D)  Springfield, IL  3 rd term  Married, Loretta Durbin, three children  68 years old  Georgetown University – law  14 years in U.S. House of Rep. Mark Kirk (R)  Chicago, IL  1 st term  Single  54 years old  Georgetown University - law  Illinois Navy Reserve  U.S. Congressman from

 I can identify the size, term length and requirements for members of the House of Representatives and the Senate.  I can explain what types of people get elected to Congress.  I can define reapportionment and explain the impact it has had on Illinois.  I can gerrymander.

 Bicameral – House and Senate  Term Length – Two Years (113 th Congress)  20 th Amendment – new Congressional term begins January 3 rd, every odd-numbered year.  Session – meeting of Congress  Recess – break in the meeting  Adjournment – end of the meeting  Special Session – can be called by President.

The Constitution says that the Senate “shall be composed of two Senators from each State.” Today’s Senate consists of 100 Senators.  17 th Amendment – Senators elected by the people.  Term Length – 6 years, no term length.  Continuous body – Only 1/3 rd of the Senate is up for re-election at a time.

The Constitution says that a Senator (1) must be at least 30 years of age, (2) must have been a citizen of the United States for at least nine years, and (3) must be an inhabitant of the State from which he or she is elected. ***Unofficially*** Must be an attractive candidate

 The size of the House is currently fixed at 435 members.  Seats are apportioned (distributed) among the States on the basis of their respective populations.  Term Length – 2 year, no term length.  All 435 are up for re- election at the same time.

The Constitution says that a member of the House (1) must be at least 25 years of age, (2) must have been a citizen of the United States for at least seven years, and (3) must have been an inhabitant of the State from which he or she is elected. ***Unofficially*** Must be an attractive candidate

Article I of the Constitution directs Congress to reapportion— redistribute—the seats in the House after each decennial census. Does this cause the number of constituents that each member of the House represents to increase or decrease?

Changes Texas +3 Florida +2 Arizona, California, Georgia, Nevada, Utah +1 Illinois, Iowa, Lousiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, Pensylvania -1 New York, Ohio -2

13th District 18 th District

Gerrymandering refers to the act of drawing congressional districts to the advantage of a particular group of citizens.

2013: Only 16% of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing.