Evaluate The View That The Congress Is Effective In Representing The Electorate. (30)

AGREE 1

Elections to congress are very frequent

1/3 of the senate and the House of Representatives are re-elected every 2 years

2022 midterms DEM lost control of HoR due to Bidens low approval ratings which were driven by the state of the economy, high inflation in particular.

DISAGREE 1

House of Representatives are elected too frequently. Congress are almost entirely focused on raising money after being re-elected rather than representing their constituents.

Members of congress typically spend upwards of 4 hours per day raising money for re-election

Those who ran for reelection in the 2024 election collectively raised $1.2 billion

AGREE 2

Congress can represent interests of constituency by voting in a way that the majority of the state would support.

Most representatives from California voted in favour of ACA due to their constituents generally favouring expanding healthcare access.

DISAGREE 2

Congress susceptible to being influenced by the interests and demands of lobbyists and interest groups due to importance of campaign finance.

NRA spent $1.48m on lobbying in 2024.

NRA played significant role in shaping U.S gun policy – prevented the renewal of the assault weapons ban (2004).

AGREE 3

Congress unrepresentative of the electorate demographically.

29% of congress is women despite women making up 50% of the population.

AGREE 3.2

2 senators per state regardless of population size

smaller states such as Wyoming have the same representation as larger states such as California.

Wyoming residents have around 68x more senate influence than California residents.

DISAGREE 3.1

Representation has improved over years.

In the 119^th congress 26% of its members identify as non-white compared to only around 17% in the 114^th congress.

DISAGREE 3.2

Caucuses can also play a role in effectively representing minority voters.

The Congressional Black Caucus is made up of African-American members of congress. It played an important role in pushing for the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in 2021.

The Congressional Womens Caucus work to achieve legislation that advances the rights of women.