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Links to biographical information, Senate service accomplishments, military service, awards and honors, and more for current and former senators. States in the Senate Lists of all senators from each state and facts about each state's history in the U.S. Senate.
Senate Historical Office . Information provided by the Senate Historical Office. Questions about Senate History? Email a Senate historian.
In 1912 Congress passed a constitutional amendment that provided for direct election of senators by the people of each state. The states ratified the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, and the first popular Senate elections were held in 1914.
The least common vote in the Senate is a division (or standing) vote. If a senator is in doubt about the outcome of a voice vote, he or she may request a division, whereby the presiding officer counts the senators voting yea and those voting no, to confirm the voice vote.
Article I, section 3 of the Constitution requires the Senate to be divided into three classes for purposes of elections. Senators are elected to six-year terms , and every two years the members of one class—approximately one-third of the senators—face election or reelection.
The Senate currently has 16 standing committees. Joint Committees include membership from both houses of Congress. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation.
The rotation of senators, and the fact that two thirds of its members carry over from Congress to Congress, established the idea that the Senate is a “continuing body”—unlike the House of Representatives, whose entire membership faces election every two years.
While most U.S. senators have been affiliated with one of the major political parties, many members of the Senate have represented a third or other minor party. This list provides the names, service dates, and political party affiliation of the Senate's many independent members.
Use this site's search or visit the Senate Index to find pages by topic. To learn about the history of the Senate visit the About the Senate section of Senate.gov.
Due to the high volume and complexity of its work, the Senate divides its tasks among 20 permanent committees, 4 joint committees, and occasionally temporary committees. More... Have a Question about Senate Committees?