What was representation in congress

Parties, interest groups, and constituents all influence members of Congress in their vote choices, and members also compromise and negotiate with one another to reach agreements. Congress represents the people of the United States.

Members serve their constituents, the people who live in the district from which they are elected. There are three theories of representation, or how people choose their representatives: trustee representation, sociological representation, and agency representation.

According to the theory of trustee representation, the people choose a representative whose judgment and experience they trust.

The representative votes for what he or she thinks is right, regardless of the opinions of the constituents. A constituent who views his or her representative as a trustee need not pay close attention to political events. According to the theory of sociological representation, the people choose a representative whose ethnic, religious, racial, social, or educational background resembles their own.

Because the views of people with similar backgrounds tend to be similar, the representative will act in ways that suit his or her constituents. House of Representatives. Approved by the 39th Congress — as H.

The Constitutional Convention addressed multiple concerns in the process of designing the new Congress. The first was the relationship of the least populous states to the most populous. The battle between big and small states colored most of the Convention and nearly ended hopes of creating a national government. If an equality of votes is to be put in its place, the large States say their money will be in danger.

When a broad table is to be made, and the edges of planks do not fit the artist takes a little from both, and makes a good joint. The compromise enabled the Convention, teetering on the brink of dissolution, to continue.

The Convention determined that a Census of the population conducted every 10 years would enable the House to adjust the distribution of its Membership on a regular basis. The method, however, proved controversial.

Southern delegates argued that their slaves counted in the population, yielding them more Representatives. Northern delegates countered that slaves were property and should not be counted at all.

Before federal income taxes or tariffs, the states contributed to the national government with local taxes, often flat poll taxes on each citizen. Since constitutional framers had to provide for the funding of the new government, they debated the proper relationship between representation and taxation. Several delegates argued that geographic size or useable farmland were better measures of state wealth than mere population.

Delegates, however, settled on proportional contributions based on population and, by extension, the number of Members in the House of Representatives.

Large states, with more human capital, should contribute more revenue to the national government and also have more seats in the legislature as a result. This fulfilled the promise of the American Revolution: taxation with representation. Census Bureau data. Congress has become slightly more religiously diverse over time. The current Congress includes the first two Muslim women ever to serve in the House and has the fewest Christians in 12 Congresses analyzed by Pew Research Center dating back to Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz.

Note: This is an update to a post originally published on Feb. In times of uncertainty, good decisions demand good data. Please support our research with a financial contribution. It organizes the public into nine distinct groups, based on an analysis of their attitudes and values.

Even in a polarized era, the survey reveals deep divisions in both partisan coalitions. Use this tool to compare the groups on some key topics and their demographics. Pew Research Center now uses as the last birth year for Millennials in our work. President Michael Dimock explains why. About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world.

It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions.

It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. Newsletters Donate My Account. Research Topics. Share this link:. Katherine Schaeffer is a research analyst at Pew Research Center.