Size of the U.S. House of Representatives
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The size of the United States House of Representatives is 435, as it has been since 1910, a number fixed by the Reapportionment Act of 1929 and the Apportionment Act of 1941 (with the exception of 1959 to 1962 when there were 437 seats to accommodate the admission of Hawaii and Alaska to the United States). There are an additional five "delegates", or Resident Commissioners, in the House of Representatives. They represent the District of Columbia and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. The Northern Mariana Islands do not currently elect any sort of representative to Congress, although legislation was introduced by former Rep. Richard Pombo of California that would allow them to do so.
The original size and apportionment of the House was set by Article One, Section 2.2C Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution.
[edit] History
The size of the First Congress was actually 59, as North Carolina and Rhode Island did not ratify the Constitution until after Congress first convened.
The size and apportionment were adjusted following each U.S. Census and the admission of states to the union. Following the 1910 census, only the apportionment has changed.
During the Civil War period of 1860-1869 various secessionist delegations did not go to Congress.
| Apportionment (year of census) | Congress | Authorized Apportionment | Size of House | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | Last | Beginning | End | ||
| Constitution | 1 | 2 | 65 | 64 | 69 |
| 1 (1790) | 3 | 7 | 105 | 105 | 106 |
| 2 (1800) | 8 | 12 | 141 | 142 | 143 |
| 3 (1810) | 13 | 17 | 181 | 182 | 187 |
| 4 (1820) | 18 | 22 | 213 | 213 | 213 |
| 5 (1830) | 23 | 27 | 240 | 240 | 242 |
| 6 (1840) | 28 | 32 | 223 | 223 | 233 |
| 7 (1850) | 33 | 37 | 234 | 234 | 238 |
| 8 (1860) | 38 | 42 | 241 | 241 | 243 |
| 9 (1870) | 43 | 47 | 292 | 292 | 293 |
| 10 (1880) | 48 | 52 | 325 | 325 | 332 |
| 11 (1890) | 53 | 57 | 356 | 356 | 357 |
| 12 (1900) | 58 | 62 | 386 | 386 | 393 |
| 13 (1910) | 63 | 67 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 14 (1920) | 68 | 72 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 15 (1930) | 73 | 77 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 16 (1940) | 78 | 82 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 17 (1950) | 83 | 87 | 435 | 435 | 437 |
| 18 (1960) | 88 | 92 | 435 | 437 | 435 |
| 19 (1970) | 93 | 97 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 20 (1980) | 98 | 102 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 21 (1990) | 103 | 107 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
| 22 (2000) | 108 | 112 | 435 | 435 | 435 |
