Seniority in the United States Senate

Seniority in the United States Senate is valuable as it confers a number of perquisites and is based on length of continuous service, with ties broken by a series of factors. Customarily, the terms "senior senator" and "junior senator" are used to distinguish the two senators representing a particular state.

Benefits of seniority

The United States Constitution does not mandate differences in rights or power, but Senate rules give more power to senators with more seniority. Generally, senior senators will have more power, especially within their own caucuses. In addition, by custom, senior senators from the president's party control federal patronage appointments in their states.

There are several perquisites, including the following:

Determining the beginning of a term

A term does not necessarily coincide with the date the Senate convenes or when the new Senator is sworn in.

In the case of Senators first elected in a general election for the upcoming Congress, their terms begin on the first day of the new Congress. Since 1935, that means January 3 of odd-numbered years.

The seniority date for an appointed senator is the date of the appointment, not necessarily the date of taking the oath of office. In the case of Senators taking vacant seats in special elections, the term begins on Election Day. However, in both of these cases, if the incoming Senator is a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives at the time, he/she must resign from the House before her/his term in the Senate begins.

Determining length of seniority

A senator's seniority is primarily determined by length of continuous service; for example, a senator who has served for 12 years is more senior than one who has served for 10 years. Because several new senators usually join at the beginning of a new Congress, there are eight tiebreakers:[1]

  1. Former Senator
  2. Former Representative
  3. Former President of the United States
  4. Former Vice President of the United States
  5. Former Cabinet member
  6. Former state Governor
  7. Population of state based on the most recent census when the senator took office
  8. Alphabetical by last name (in case two senators came from the same state on the same day and have identical credentials)

When more than one senator has served in the same previous role, length of time in that prior office is used to break the tie. For instance, Barbara Mikulski, Richard Shelby, John McCain and Harry Reid all took office on January 3, 1987, and each had previously served in the House of Representatives. Mikulski, having served 10 years, is more senior than Shelby, who served 8. They are both more senior than McCain and Reid, who each served 4 years. McCain outranks Reid because Arizona's population was larger than Nevada's at the 1980 census.

Current seniority list

The president pro tempore of the Senate is traditionally the most senior member of the majority party. Only relevant factors are listed below. For senators whose seniority is based on their states' respective populations, the state population ranking is given as determined by the relevant United States Census current at the time they first took their seat.[2][3][4][5]

Current
rank
Historical
rank[6]
Senator (Party-State) Seniority date First tie-breaker Second tie-breaker Committee and leadership positions
1 1692 Patrick Leahy (D-VT) January 3, 1975 Ranking Member: Judiciary
2 1708 Orrin Hatch (R-UT) January 3, 1977 President pro tempore
Chairman: Finance
3 1719 Thad Cochran (R-MS) December 27, 1978[n 1] Chairman: Appropriations
4 1745 Chuck Grassley (R-IA) January 3, 1981 Chairman: Judiciary
5 1766 Mitch McConnell (R-KY) January 3, 1985 Majority Leader
6 1773 Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) January 3, 1987 Former Representative (10 years) Ranking Member: Appropriations
7 1775 Richard Shelby (R-AL)[n 2] Former Representative (8 years) Chairman: Banking
8 1777 John McCain (R-AZ) Former Representative (4 years) Arizona 29th in population (1980) Chairman: Armed Services
9 1778 Harry Reid (D-NV) Nevada 43rd in population (1980) Minority Leader
Democratic Caucus Chair
10 1801 Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) November 4, 1992     Ranking Member: Intelligence
11 1804 Barbara Boxer[n 3] (D-CA) January 3, 1993 Former Representative Ranking Member: Environment
Vice Chairwoman: Ethics
12 1810 Patty Murray (D-WA) Ranking Member: HELP
Democratic Caucus Secretary
13 1816 Jim Inhofe (R-OK) November 16, 1994 Chairman: Environment
14 1827 Ron Wyden (D-OR) February 6, 1996 Ranking Member: Finance
15 1830 Pat Roberts (R-KS) January 3, 1997 Former Representative (16 years) Chairman: Agriculture
16 1831 Dick Durbin (D-IL) Former Representative (14 years) Minority Whip
17 1835 Jack Reed (D-RI) Former Representative (6 years) Ranking Member: Armed Services
18 1839 Jeff Sessions (R-AL) Alabama 22nd in population (1990)  
19 1842 Susan Collins (R-ME) Maine 38th in population (1990) Chairwoman: Aging
20 1843 Mike Enzi (R-WY) Wyoming 50th in population (1990) Chairman: Budget
21 1844 Chuck Schumer (D-NY) January 3, 1999 Former Representative (18 years) Ranking Member: Rules
Democratic Caucus Vice Chair
Democratic Policy Chair
22 1846 Mike Crapo (R-ID) Former Representative (6 years)  
23 1854 Bill Nelson (D-FL) January 3, 2001 Former Representative (12 years) Ranking Member: Commerce
24 1855 Tom Carper (D-DE) Former Representative (10 years) Ranking Member: Homeland Security
25 1856 Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) Former Representative (4 years) Ranking Member: Agriculture
Democratic Policy Vice Chair
26 1859 Maria Cantwell (D-WA) Former Representative (2 years) Ranking Member: Energy
27 1873 Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) December 20, 2002   Chairman: Energy
28 1867 Lindsey Graham (R-SC) January 3, 2003 Former Representative  
29 1869 Lamar Alexander (R-TN) Former Cabinet member Chairman: HELP
30 1871 John Cornyn[n 4] (R-TX) Majority Whip
31 1876 Richard Burr (R-NC) January 3, 2005 Former Representative (10 years) Chairman: Intelligence
32 1879 John Thune (R-SD) Former Representative (6 years) Chairman: Commerce
Republican Conference Chairman
33 1880 Johnny Isakson (R-GA) Former Representative (5 yrs., 10 mos.) Chairman: Veterans' Affairs
Chairman: Ethics
34 1881 David Vitter (R-LA) Former Representative (5 yrs., 7 mos.) Chairman: Small Business
35 1885 Bob Menendez (D-NJ) January 17, 2006[n 1]  
36 1886 Ben Cardin (D-MD) January 3, 2007 Former Representative (20 years) Ranking Member: Foreign Relations
37 1887 Bernie Sanders (I-VT) Former Representative (16 years) Ranking Member: Budget
38 1888 Sherrod Brown (D-OH) Former Representative (14 years) Ranking Member: Banking
39 1890 Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA) Pennsylvania 6th in population (2000)  
40 1891 Bob Corker (R-TN) Tennessee 16th in population (2000) Chairman: Foreign Relations
41 1892 Claire McCaskill (D-MO) Missouri 17th in population (2000) Ranking Member: Aging
42 1893 Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) Minnesota 21st in population (2000)
43 1894 Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) Rhode Island 43rd in population (2000)
44 1895 Jon Tester (D-MT) Montana 44th in population (2000) Vice Chairman: Indian Affairs
Chairman: DSCC
45 1896 John Barrasso (R-WY) June 22, 2007 Chairman: Indian Affairs
Republican Policy Chair
46 1897 Roger Wicker (R-MS) December 31, 2007[n 1] Chairman: NRSC
47 1899 Tom Udall (D-NM) January 3, 2009 Former Representative  
48 1901 Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) Former Governor (6 years) Ranking Member: Small Business
49 1902 Mark Warner (D-VA) Former Governor (4 years)
50 1903 Jim Risch (R-ID) Former Governor (7 months)
51 1905 Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
52 1909 Michael Bennet (D-CO) January 21, 2009[n 1]
53 1910 Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) January 26, 2009[n 1]
54 1911 Al Franken (D-MN) July 7, 2009[n 5]
55 1916 Joe Manchin (D-WV) November 15, 2010 Former Governor
56 1917 Chris Coons (D-DE)  
57 1918 Mark Kirk (R-IL) November 29, 2010
58 1785[8] Dan Coats (R-IN) January 3, 2011 Former Senator[n 6]
59 1919 Roy Blunt (R-MO) Former Representative (14 years) Missouri 17th in population (2000) Chairman: Rules
Republican Conference Vice Chair
60 1920 Jerry Moran (R-KS) Kansas 33rd in population (2000)
61 1921 Rob Portman (R-OH) Former Representative (12 years)
62 1922 John Boozman (R-AR) Former Representative (10 years)
63 1923 Pat Toomey (R-PA) Former Representative (6 years)
64 1924 John Hoeven (R-ND) Former Governor
65 1925 Marco Rubio (R-FL) Florida 4th in population (2000)
66 1926 Ron Johnson (R-WI) Wisconsin 20th in population (2000) Chairman: Homeland Security
67 1927 Rand Paul (R-KY) Kentucky 25th in population (2000)  
68 1928 Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) Connecticut 29th in population (2000) Ranking Member: Veterans' Affairs
69 1929 Mike Lee (R-UT) Utah 34th in population (2000)  
70 1930 Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) New Hampshire 42nd in population (2000)
71 1931 Dean Heller (R-NV) May 9, 2011
72 1932 Brian Schatz (D-HI) December 26, 2012[n 1]
73 1933 Tim Scott (R-SC) January 2, 2013[n 1]
74 1934 Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) January 3, 2013 Former Representative (14 years)
75 1935 Jeff Flake (R-AZ) Former Representative (12 years)
76 1936 Joe Donnelly (D-IN) Former Representative (6 years) Indiana 15th in population (2010)
77 1937 Chris Murphy (D-CT) Connecticut 29th in population (2010)
78 1938 Mazie Hirono (D-HI) Hawaii 40th in population (2010)
79 1939 Martin Heinrich (D-NM) Former Representative (4 years)  
80 1940 Angus King (I-ME) Former Governor (8 years)
81 1941 Tim Kaine (D-VA) Former Governor (4 years)
82 1942 Ted Cruz (R-TX) Texas 2nd in population (2010)
83 1943 Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) Massachusetts 14th in population (2010)
84 1944 Deb Fischer[n 7] (R-NE) Nebraska 38th in population (2010)
85 1945 Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) North Dakota 48th in population (2010)
86 1948 Ed Markey (D-MA) July 16, 2013
87 1949 Cory Booker (D-NJ) October 31, 2013
88 1951 Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) January 3, 2015 Former Representative (14 years)
89 1952 Gary Peters (D-MI) Former Representative (6 years) Michigan 8th in population (2010)
90 1953 Bill Cassidy (R-LA) Louisiana 25th in population (2010)
91 1954 Cory Gardner (R-CO) Former Representative (4 years) Colorado 22nd in population (2010)
92 1955 James Lankford (R-OK) Oklahoma 28th in population (2010)
93 1956 Tom Cotton (R-AR) Former Representative (2 years) Arkansas 32nd in population (2010)
94 1957 Steve Daines (R-MT) Montana 44th in population (2010)
95 1958 Mike Rounds (R-SD) Former Governor
96 1959 David Perdue (R-GA) Georgia 9th in population (2010)
97 1960 Thom Tillis (R-NC) North Carolina 10th in population (2010)
98 1961 Joni Ernst (R-IA) Iowa 30th in population (2010)
99 1962 Ben Sasse (R-NE) Nebraska 38th in population (2010)
100 1963 Dan Sullivan (R-AK) Alaska 47th in population (2010)
Rank Historical
rank
Senator Seniority date First tie-breaker Second tie-breaker Committee and leadership positions

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 The seniority date for an appointed senator is the date of the appointment, not necessarily the date of taking the oath of office. See Determining the beginning of a term, above.
  2. Richard Shelby's 1994 party change did not break his service or seniority.
  3. Barbara Boxer (#11) is the Senate's most senior junior senator.
  4. John Cornyn's predecessor, Phil Gramm, resigned early, effective November 30, 2002, so that Senator-elect Cornyn could take office early, and move into Gramm's office suite in order to begin organizing his staff. Cornyn did not, however, gain seniority, owing to a 1980 Rules Committee policy that no longer gave seniority to senators who entered Congress early for the purpose of gaining advantageous office space.
  5. Al Franken was elected to the Senate term that began January 3, 2009, but, due to legal challenges, was not sworn in until July 7, 2009 (see United States Senate election in Minnesota, 2008 for more details). His seniority date is based on the date he was sworn in.[7]
  6. Dan Coats previously served in the Senate from 1989 to 1999.
  7. Deb Fischer (#84) is the Senate's most junior senior senator.

References

  1. "A Chronological List of United States Senators 1789–present". Senate Historical Office.
  2. 1981 U.S Census Report Contains 1980 Census results.
  3. 1991 U.S Census Report Contains 1990 Census results.
  4. American FactFinder, United States Census Bureau. "2000 Census State Population Rankings". Factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved May 28, 2010.
  5. Resident Population Data (Text Version) - 2010 Census Contains 1910 to 2010 results by state and census region
  6. "SENATORS OF THE UNITED STATES / 1789-present / A chronological list of senators since the First Congress in 1789" (PDF). Senate Historical Office. April 17, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  7. Rushing, J. Taylor (July 8, 2009). "Franken ranks last in Senate seniority". The Hill. Archived from the original on September 29, 2009. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  8. Coats previously served as a U.S. Senator.

External links

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