Congressional elections, held every two years, determine who serves in the legislative branch of the US government. The Congress consists of two houses, each with its own electoral procedure. Members of the House of Representatives hold office for two years, while Senators serve six-year terms. Before the 17th amendment, Senators were chosen by state legislatures, but now both Senators and Representatives are elected by popular vote. The candidate with the most votes wins, and if no candidate wins a clear majority, runoff elections may be initiated.
Congressional elections, held every two years, are the means of determining who serves in the legislative branch of the United States government. The legislature, or Congress, consists of two houses, the House of Representatives and the Senate. Each house has its own electoral procedure.
A congressional election occurs in every even-numbered year. Members of the House of Representatives hold office for two years. As a result, every congressional election sees all 435 members of the House up for re-election. Each member is elected to represent a particular congressional district. The number of districts in a state varies according to the state’s population.
Unlike members of the House of Representatives, Senators serve six-year terms. As a result, only about one-third of 100 senators run for re-election in any given congressional election. Each state has only two senators, and only one of a state’s senators will run for congressional elections. Unlike Representatives, who serve a particular district, Senators serve for the entire state. Senate elections are therefore statewide.
Before the passage of the 17th amendment to the United States Constitution in 1913, the procedures for electing senators varied from state to state. The Constitution mandates that senators be chosen by the state legislature, but many state legislators have elected to allow senators to be chosen by popular vote. After the amendment, the election of senators became part of the larger congressional election.
Both Senators and Representatives are now elected by popular vote. In most states, the candidate who gets a plurality of votes is elected. This means that in some states, to win a congressional election, a candidate must not have won the votes of the majority of voters. He or she simply has to get the most votes out of all the candidates. If no candidate wins a clear majority, however, many states initiate runoff elections, in which the top-performing candidates play against each other.
Congressional elections in most states follow the same or similar procedures. A party usually appoints its holder if the party is in office; if not, a primary party or party convention selects the candidate. In most districts and states, the Republican and Democratic parties are the leading parties, but others can appear on the ballot if they are eligible. Rules for voting inclusion vary from state to state. Once candidates have been shortlisted, their names are listed on the ballot, allowing voters to choose the candidate of their choice on Election Day.
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