Chapter 10 Notes Section 1 and 2 Section

Chapter 10 Notes • Section 1 and 2 – Section 2, Part 2 • Section 3 and 4

Jumpstart Assignment Describe the political cartoon below.

Why bicameralism? • What are the advantages to a bicameral government? • What are the disadvantages to a bicameral legislature?

House of Representatives • 435 Members (a # which is set by Congress) – The original House of Representatives had only 65 members. • House members serve 2 year terms – Why 2 years?

House Apportionment • Reps. are apportioned based on state pop. • They are reapportioned every 10 years based on the national census. • The Reapportionment Act of 1929 set the “permanent” size of the House at 435

Off-Year Elections • Off-year elections are those congressional elections held between presidential elections.

Today’s Plan • Jumpstart Assignment: Why do you suppose the President’s political party seems to do so poorly in off-year elections throughout most of America’s history? • Reading Minute • Notes: Section 2 • Assignment: Who Represents Me

Districts • The House of Reps. has single member districts. – Under the single-member district arrangement, the voters in each district elect one of the State’s representatives. • The general-ticket system, no longer in use, provided that all of a State’s seats were filled at-large.

Gerrymandering • Districts are drawn to the advantage of the political party that controls the State’s legislature. • Wesberry v. Sanders – established “one-person, one-vote” districts

Qualifications • • • 25 years old Citizen for 7 yrs. Inhabitant of the state where he/she is elected • The realities of politics also require some informal qualifications, such as party identification, name familiarity, gender, ethnic characteristics, and political experience.

Today’s Plan • Jumpstart Assignment How should a member of Congress make a decision on a vote, based on views of the people, their own consciences, or based on their political parties view? Explain your answer. • Gerrymandering Activity • Notes: Ch. 10, Section 3 and 4 • Comparing the House and Senate

The Senate • 2 Senators per state (100 total) • Serve 6 year terms (1/3 of the Senate is up for re-election every 2 years) • Until the 17 th Amendment (1913), Senators were elected by State Legislatures • The Senate is a continuous body, meaning that all of its seats are never up for election at the same time.

Senate Qualifications • 30 years old • Citizen for 9 years • Inhabitant of the state where elected (though not for any specific period of time)

Job of Congress Members 1) Work in committee to screen proposed laws – Oversight Function – a way to check agencies of the Executive Branch 2) Represent the people (constituents) 3) Law Making 4) Serving their constituents

Voting Options • Trustees – believe that each question they face must be decided on its merit • Delegates – see themselves as agents of the people they represent • Partisans – lawmakers who see their allegiance to their political party as being the most important • Politicos – attempt to combine all three

Compensation • • • House and Senate - $174, 000 Pay is set by Congress The franking privilege allows members of Congress to mail letters and other materials postage-free • Office budget

• • • Senate Qualifications (age, citizenship) Terms Pay Number Who they represent? House