Unit III Lesson 3Intro to The U.S. House of Representatives

Essential Question:• What are the institutions and

policy-making processes of the national government?

• What are the links between the branches of the national government, political parties, interest groups, public opinion, the media, and state and local governments?

“Congress”“Bicameral”

“The People’s

Chamber”

What You Call Them

“Congressman”

“Congressmen” (and “Congresswomen”) serve a two-year term in the U.S. House of Representatives

“Congresswoman”

2012 20142010

There are 435 Representatives (Congressmen and women) in the House

435Represent?

Each Congressperson speaks for one congressional

district

RepresentativeBobby Bright

(D-AL 2nd District)

Sometimes simply called

“Congressman”

435

CongressmanDoug Collins

Each Congressperson speaks for one congressional district

RepresentativeBobby Bright

(D-AL 2nd District)

Representation Based On

29

1

Population

27

650,000

1

53

14

If each Congressional district represents about 650,000 people what do you think

the different SIZES of the districts means?

650,000

650,000

Big Cities?

“Remind me…”

435

435

The U.S. Census is taken every 10 years and determines the number of congressmen each state sends to the U.S. House

of Representatives

435650,000

The U.S. Census

435

Apportionment- The process by which seats in House are distributed among the 50 states following a census (some states gain representation and some states lose

representation but the total number of seats in the House stays at 435)

435

435“Apportionment”

U.S. Representatives are elected for:

A.Two-year terms

B.Four-year terms

C.Six-year terms

D.Life

The Reapportionment Act of 1929 set the total number of U.S. Representatives in the

House at:

A.1

B.2

C.100

D.435

The boundary lines of congressional districts must be redrawn every ten years to:

A.Reflect population shifts indicated by the national census

B.Make sure each state’s congressional delegation exactly mirrors its residents’ party affiliations

C.Increase the number of female and minority members of Congress

D.Determine which party’s leader will be named Speaker of the House

After each census count Congress determines which states gain and lose

representation; this process is referred to as:

A.Redistricting

B.Gerrymandering

C.Apportionment

D.Censuring