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The characteristics of the Senate—the basis of representation, the number of senators per state, the qualifications for office, the terms of service, and the powers that the body exercises—were the product of fierce debate and a number of compromises at the Constitutional Convention.
The composition and powers of the Senate are established by Article One of the United States Constitution. Each of the 50 states is represented by two senators who serve staggered terms of six years ; in total, the Senate consists of 100 members. [6]
- 6 years
- November 8, 2022 (35 seats)
- 100
- Overview
- Constitutional framework
- Organization and powers
- U.S. senators
United States Senate, one of the two houses of the legislature (Congress) of the United States, established in 1789 under the Constitution. Each state elects two senators for six-year terms. The terms of about one-third of the Senate membership expire every two years, earning the chamber the nickname “the house that never dies.”
The role of the Senate was conceived by the Founding Fathers as a check on the popularly elected House of Representatives. Thus, each state, regardless of size or population, is equally represented. Further, until the Seventeenth Amendment of the Constitution (1913), election to the Senate was indirect, by the state legislatures. They are now elected directly by voters of each state.
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The Senate shares with the House of Representatives responsibility for all lawmaking within the United States. For an act of Congress to be valid, both houses must approve an identical document.
As in the House of Representatives, political parties and the committee system dominate procedure and organization. Each party elects a leader, generally a senator of considerable influence in his or her own right, to coordinate Senate activities. The leader of the largest party is known as the majority leader, while the opposition leader is known as the minority leader. The Senate leaders also play an important role in appointing members of their party to the Senate committees, which consider and process legislation and exercise general control over government agencies and departments. The vice president of the United States serves as the president of the Senate but can vote only in instances where there is a tie. In the vice president’s absence, the president pro tempore—generally the longest-serving member from the majority party—is the presiding officer of the Senate.
Sixteen standing committees are grouped mainly around major policy areas, each having staffs, budgets, and various subcommittees. The chair of each committee is a member of the majority party. Among important standing committees are those on appropriations, finance, government operations, foreign relations, and the judiciary. Thousands of bills are referred to the committees during each session of Congress, though the committees take up only a fraction of these bills. At “mark-up” sessions, which may be open or closed, the final language for a law is considered. The committees hold hearings and call witnesses to testify about the legislation before them. Select and special committees are also created to make studies or to conduct investigations and report to the Senate; these committees cover aging, ethics, Indian affairs, and intelligence.
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The smaller membership of the Senate permits more extended debate than is common in the House of Representatives. To check a filibuster—endless debate obstructing legislative action—three-fifths of the membership (60 senators) must vote for cloture. (In 2013 the Senate rule for invoking cloture was reinterpreted to permit cloture by majority vote for debate regarding all presidential nominations except those to the Supreme Court, and in 2017 the rule was similarly reinterpreted for Supreme Court nominations.) If the legislation under debate would change the Senate’s standing rules, cloture may be invoked only on a vote of two-thirds of those present. There is a less elaborate structure of party control in the Senate; the position taken by influential senators may be more significant than the position (if any) taken by the party.
The constitutional provisions regarding qualifications for membership of the Senate specify a minimum age of 30, citizenship of the United States for nine years, and residence in the state from which elected.
The table provides a list of current U.S. senators.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The composition, powers and procedures of the United States Senate, the upper body of the legislative branch of the federal government.
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An overview of the structures, powers, and functions of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The structure and operations of Congress reflect the republican ideal of self-government via elected representatives.
The Senate would be composed of two senators from each state elected by the state legislatures and thus indirectly by the people; in 1913, that changed so that senators would be directly elected by the people of each state. Congress carries the “power of the purse,” which is the ability to tax and spend public money for the national government.
