We are looking at Congress as an institution in my AP Government class at the moment. In order to allow students to see the demographics of Congress relative to our society, I provide the official report that Congress makes available and ask student to do a bit of research. Below is a demographic summary of Congress, in all its dysfunction. Note, this does not include the recently elected Democratic congresswoman from Arizona Adelita Grijalva.

  1. Party breakdown (May 13, 2025): • House: 220 Republicans (plus 3 Delegates), 213 Democrats (plus 2 Delegates and the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico), and 2 vacant seats. • Senate: 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats, and 2 Independents (both caucus with Democrats).

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  1. Women in Congress: • 155 women serve (129 in the House, including 4 Delegates; 26 in the Senate). • They make up 28.65% of total membership. • Women make up about 50.5% of the overall U.S. population, so they remain underrepresented.

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  1. Average age: • House: 57.9 years • Senate: 63.9 years • Median U.S. age: about 39 years (U.S. Census 2024). → Members of Congress are much older on average than the general population.

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  1. Most common professions: • Law, business, and public service/politics. → In contrast, the most common U.S. jobs overall are in retail, food service, and office administration—showing Congress is dominated by professionals rather than service-sector workers.

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  1. Education: • 96% of Members are college graduates; 66% of House and 78% of Senate members hold advanced degrees. • By comparison, only about 38% of U.S. adults have a bachelor’s degree or higher—so Congress is far more highly educated than the general population.

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  1. Average length of service: • Representatives: 8.6 years (about 4.3 terms) • Senators: 11.2 years (about 1.9 terms) → A more experienced Congress can mean institutional knowledge and policy expertise, but can also reduce turnover and fresh perspectives. Conversely, many newcomers can bring new ideas but may lack legislative experience.

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  1. Religious affiliations: • 55.1% Protestant, 28.0% Catholic, 6.0% Jewish, 1.7% Latter-day Saints, small numbers of Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Orthodox members. • Compared to the U.S. population, which is about 63% Christian and more religiously diverse overall, Congress remains more heavily Christian.

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  1. African American Members: • 61 in the House (including 2 Delegates), 5 in the Senate → 66 total (12.2%). • African Americans make up about 13.6% of the U.S. population, so representation is roughly proportional.

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  1. Hispanic or Latino Members: • 50 in the House (including 1 Delegate and the Resident Commissioner), 6 in the Senate → 56 total (10.35%). • Hispanics/Latinos make up about 19% of the U.S. population, so they remain underrepresented.

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  1. Asian American and Pacific Islander Members: • 24 total (21 in the House, 3 in the Senate) → 4.4% of Congress. • Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are about 7.5% of the U.S. population, so they are underrepresented.

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  1. Native American Members: • 4 total (3 in the House, 1 in the Senate) → 0.74% of Congress. • Native Americans are about 1.3% of the U.S. population, so they are underrepresented.

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  1. Military service: • 98 Members (18.1%) have served or are serving in the military. • This is down sharply from 64% in the 97th Congress (1981–82) and 73% in the 92nd (1971–72). • About 6% of U.S. adults are veterans today—so Congress still has a higher veteran rate than the general population but much lower than mid-20th-century levels.