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Each state in the United States has a legislative branch as part of its form of civil government. Most of the fundamental details of the legislature are specified in the state constitution. Forty-nine (49) state legislatures are bicameral bodies, composed of a lower house (Assembly, General Assembly, State Assembly, House of Delegates or House of Representatives) and an upper house (Senate). The Nebraska Legislature is the lone unicameral body.
The exact names, dates, term limits (if any), term lengths, electoral districts, and other details are at the discretion of the individual states. The following shows the state, names, membership, parties and terms of each state's legislature.
Contents |
Party summary
As of January 2009, the party composition of the legislatures is[1]:
| 27 | Democratic-controlled Legislatures |
| 14 | Republican-controlled Legislatures |
| 8 | Split Legislatures |
| 1 | Officially nonpartisan (Nebraska) |
| 50 | Total |
"Split" means that either the two chambers have different majority parties (e.g., Democratic Senate and Republican lower house), that one chamber is evenly split between parties, or that a coalition or "hung" chamber has occurred.
In several states, the party that controls the state legislature may not be the one that usually wins the state in presidential elections. Also note that due to politics, a party with a numerical majority in a chamber may be forced to share power with other parties due to informal coalitions, or outright cede power due to divisions.
The table below shows total state government control, which means the governor and the chamber majorities are all of the same party.
| 17 | Democratic-controlled governments |
| 9 | Republican-controlled governments |
| 5 | Democratic Governor/Republican-controlled Legislature |
| 10 | Republican Governor/Democratic-controlled Legislature |
| 6 | Democratic Governor/Split Legislature |
| 2 | Republican Governor/Split Legislature |
| 1 | Officially nonpartisan (Nebraska) |
| 50 | Total |
Vital statistics
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It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Political party strength in U.S. states. (Discuss) |
State legislatures
Washington, D.C.
| Jurisdiction | Name | Type | Party Strengths| |
||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Party Strengths |
Term (Years) |
Name | Party Strengths |
Term (Years) |
||||||
| District of Columbia | Council | Unicameral | D 11 2 Ind. |
4 | |||||||
Territorial legislatures
| State | Name | Lower House | Upper House | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Party Strengths |
Term (Years) |
Name | Party Strengths |
Term (Years) |
||
| American Samoa | Fono | House of Representatives | non-partisan (20) | 2 | Senate | non-partisan (18) | 4 |
| Guam | Legislature | Unicameral | D 8-7 | 2 | |||
| Northern Mariana Islands | Legislature | House of Representatives | R 12-1 Cov. 4-3 Ind. |
2 | Senate | Coal. 6-3 | 4 |
| Puerto Rico | Legislative Assembly | House of Representatives | NPP 36–17 PDP | 4 | Senate | NPP 22–9 PDP | 4 |
| U. S. Virgin Islands | Legislature | Unicameral | D 9-4 ICM 2 Ind. |
2 | |||
Map key
| Color | Name | Abbreviation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | D | Major national party; has state-level parties in each state | |
| Republican Party | R | Major national party; has state-level parties in each state | |
| Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party | DFL | Minnesota affiliate of the Democratic Party | |
| North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party | D-NPL | North Dakota affiliate of the Democratic Party | |
| [None] | Governing Coalition | Coal. | A coalition of the Democratic and Republican Parties in power in the Alaska Senate or a coalition of the Covenant, Democratic, and Independents in power in the Northern Mariana Islands Senate. |
| Constitution Party | C | National third party; has representation in Montana | |
| Vermont Progressive Party | P | State-level third party operating only in Vermont | |
| Covenant Party | Cov. | Territorial-level third party operating only in Northern Mariana Islands | |
| New Progressive Party | NPP | Territorial-level third party operating only in Puerto Rico | |
| Popular Democratic Party | PDP | Territorial-level third party operating only in Puerto Rico | |
| Puerto Rican Independence Party | PIP | Territorial-level third party operating only in Puerto Rico | |
| Independent Citizens Movement | ICM | Territorial-level third party operating only in the U.S. Virgin Islands | |
| [None] | Independent | Ind. | People who were elected without a party backing or people who left their party while in office |
| [None] | Vacant | Vac. | Resignations, disqualifications, impeachments, expulsions and deaths |
Notes
- All 9 of the Democrats and 6 of the Republicans in the Alaska Senate form a governing coalition with the remaining 5 Republicans in opposition.[2][3]
- The two nonvoting members of the Maine House of Representatives, elected by the Penobscot Nation and the Passamaquoddy Tribe respectively, are not counted in the above table, as they are not counted in similar tabulations in State Government web sites.
Legislative websites
Below are links and URLs to all 50 state legislature websites. For most states the only place where the full text of the statutes are available online is the state legislature's website.
See also
- National Conference of State Legislatures
- State Legislative Sourcebook
- Comparison of state governments
External links
- National Conference of State Legislatures
- State Legislatures Internet Links
- State Legislatures, State Laws, and State Regulations: Website Links and Telephone Numbers
- Legislative Session Calendars and Bill Introduction Deadlines
Notes
- ^ NCSL. "Chalk one up for the GOP". http://ncsl.typepad.com/the_thicket/2006/11/chalk_one_up_fo.html. Retrieved 2006.
- ^ Bipartisan gang takes over Alaska state Senate. Anchorage Daily News. November 29, 2006.
- ^ McGuire joins bipartisan coalition. Anchorage Daily News. December 20, 2006.
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