#40: CIVICS 101: The Legislative Branch
Q&A #40: Do the terms ‘‘senior Senator’’ and ‘‘junior Senator’’ apply to age or service?
Our American Government
Our American Government is a small book published by the House of Representatives for citizens and those who seek a greater understanding of the American interpretation of democracy. It follows a question-and-answer format and covers a broad range of topics dealing with the three branches of our Government, the electoral process, and the role of political parties.
The Savvy Citizen is reproducing the 169 questions-and-answers through a series of posts called Civics 101. Each post will contain the Q&A as well as some additional commentary to add historical context, fun facts, or anything we believe will add to our collective understanding of these topics.
Think of it as your adult Civics class but without the test!
Let’s keep at it.
SECTION: The Legislative Branch: The Congress
Members, Offices, and Staff
Q&A #40: Do the terms ‘‘senior Senator’’ and ‘‘junior Senator’’ apply to age or service?
The words ‘‘senior’’ or ‘‘junior’’ as applied to the two Senators from a State refer to their length of continuous service in the Senate, and not to their ages. Thus, a senior Senator may be younger in age than the junior Senator from the same State.
My Thoughts
Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-WV) holds the record for the longest serving Senator in U.S. History: 52 years, 5 months, and 26 days (January 3, 1959 - June 28, 2010, the day he passed away).
You can read more about Senator Byrd in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress here.
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Back next time with Q&A #41: What provisions are made for offices for Members and committees of the Congress?
Meanwhile, don’t forget that we’re organizing the post links on a single page available here.
xo,
Kelley for the Savvy Citizen Team
January 15, 2025