A record number of women are serving in the 117th Congress
Women make up just over a quarter of all members of the 117th Congress – the highest percentage in U.S. history.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Women make up just over a quarter of all members of the 117th Congress – the highest percentage in U.S. history.
Even as younger generations gain representation in Congress, older generations still make up the majority of senators and representatives.
When legislatures get the data to draw new congressional maps, Republicans will drive that process in 20 states, versus 11 for Democrats.
We developed this explainer to help people understand how, and why, the complex U.S. electoral process is even more so this time around.
No lame-duck session in the nearly 5 decades for which data is available has been as legislatively productive as that of the 116th Congress.
So far, 28 representatives have announced they’re retiring; four other Republicans and three Democrats are running for other offices instead.
The 2018 midterm elections significantly boosted the number of Millennials and Generation Xers in the lower chamber.
Turnout in this year’s primaries for Congress and most state governorships surged compared with the last midterms in 2014, particularly among Democrats. Nearly a fifth (19.6%) of registered voters – about 37 million – cast ballots in primary elections for the U.S. House of Representatives – a 56% increase over the 23.7 million who voted in 2014’s House primaries. Turnout that year was 13.7% of registered voters.
Mitch McConnell’s decision to shorten the chamber’s August recess isn’t unprecedented. But in an election year – when a third of senators are on the campaign trail – it’s unusual.
More members of the U.S. House of Representatives are choosing not to seek re-election than at any time in the past quarter-century.
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