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Illinois's current U.S. senators are Democrats Dick Durbin (serving since 1997) and Tammy Duckworth (serving since 2017). Shelby Moore Cullom was the longest serving senator, who served from 1883 to 1913.
The 107th Congress (2001–2003) was the most recent one that contained all of the current top 7 longest serving senators in history (Byrd, Inouye, Leahy, Thurmond, Kennedy, Grassley, and Hatch).
Total TenureTotal TenureUninterruptedName159 years, 21 days1257 years, 176 days2Robert Byrd (S, H)356 years, 319 days3Carl Hayden (S, H)453 years, 118 days4Daniel Inouye (S, H)In November 2022, Dianne Feinstein became the longest-serving female senator in history, surpassing Barbara Mikulski, having served for 30 years. Feinstein was retiring at the end of her last term, scheduled for January 3, 2025, [12] but died on September 29, 2023, before her term ended. [13]
Total TenureTotal TenureUninterruptedName159 years, 21 days1257 years, 176 days2Robert Byrd (S, H)356 years, 319 days3Carl Hayden (S, H)453 years, 118 days4Daniel Inouye (S, H)In the Senate, Republican Margaret Chase Smith, who served for 23 years from 1949 to 1973 as a senator from Maine, was the longest-serving female Senator upon her retirement. Her record was surpassed in 2011 by Barbara Mikulski of Maryland, who served for 30 years from 1987 to 2017.
ImageName (lifespan)PartyDistrictJeannette Rankin (1880–1973)March 4, 1917Alice Robertson (1854–1931)March 4, 1921Mae Nolan (1886–1973)January 23, 1923Florence Kahn (1866–1948)March 4, 1925These 25 individuals have served the longest U.S. Senate terms as of January 24, 2024.
- Longest Serving Former and Current Senators
- Longest Serving House Members
- 13 Longest Serving Active Members of Congress
- Why Does Length of Time Served Matter?
While there have been efforts made by both former President Trump and others in the past to limit the number of terms senators can serve, there are currently no term limits for Congress. Proposed term limits have been proposed to limit service to two consecutive terms, totaling 12 years of service consecutively. These measures, however, have never ...
The most recent proposed term limit legislation was introduced in the House by Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) in November 2021, which would limit incoming members of Congress to serve a maximum of three two-year terms consecutively. So far, this joint resolution has garnered 79 cosponsors, all of whom are Republicans. If this bill had been passed duri...
There are 13 active members of Congress that have the longest tenure of service, some of whom have served only in one chamber and some of whom have served both the Senate and House of Representatives. These are members of Congress actively serving that have the longest combined record of service on anyone currently serving in Congress. *Has served ...
The average age of members of Congress skews older than the average age of most Americans, with the average American being20 years younger than their representative in Congress. As of 2015, 19 percent of Americans eligible to run for Congressare 65 or older. With Congress meant to reflect the diversity (including age) of the United States populatio...
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This is a list of United States congressmen who have set records for longevity of service since the United States 1st Congress in 1789. It is divided up into several categories.
