How Old to Run for House of Representatives
Constitutional Qualifications
"No Person shall exist a Representative who shall not take attained to the age of 20 v Years, and been vii Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall non, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen."
— U.Southward. Constitution, Article I, section 2, clause two
/tiles/not-collection/i/i_origins_constitutional_qualifications_aoc.xml Scene at the Signing of the Constitution, Howard Chandler Christy, 1940, epitome courtesy of the Builder of the Capitol
The Constitution placed notably few hurdles between ordinary citizens and becoming a Member of the U.Due south. Firm of Representatives. The founders wanted the Business firm to be the legislative sleeping accommodation closest to the people—the least restrictive on age, citizenship, and the only federal office at the time subject field to frequent popular ballot. The Constitution requires that Members of the Firm be at least 25 years old, accept been a U.S. denizen for at to the lowest degree vii years, and live in the state they stand for (though non necessarily the same district). And Article 6, clause 3 requires that all Members have an oath to support the Constitution earlier they exercise the duties of their role. In Federalist 52, James Madison of Virginia wrote that, "Under these reasonable limitations, the door of this part of the federal government is open up to merit of every clarification, whether native or adoptive, whether young or old, and without regard to poverty or wealth, or to any detail profession of religious faith."
Origins
The constitutional qualifications for role originate in British law. Members of the Firm of Commons had to alive in the shires or boroughs they represented, although that was rarely done in practise. The founders used that example to motivate the requirement that Members of the Firm live in the country they correspond. This would increase the likelihood that they would be familiar with the people's interests there, but there was no mention during the debates near living in the same district. The district organisation emerged later as states dealt with how to fairly organize their congressional delegations.
Citizenship
At the time the U.South. Constitution was written, the British prevented anyone born outside England or its Empire from serving in the Commons, even if the individual had afterward become a citizen. Past mandating that an individual exist a citizen for at least seven years, the founders attempted to strike a balance between preventing strange interference in domestic politics and keeping the House of Representatives close to the people. The founders also did non want to discourage immigration to the new country past shutting off the government to new arrivals.
Age
The founders initially fix 21, the voting age, as the minimum age to serve in the Business firm. During the Federal Constitutional Convention, though, George Mason of Virginia moved to make the historic period 25. Mason said that there should be a period between being free to manage 1's ain affairs and managing the "diplomacy of a great nation." Convention Delegate James Wilson of Pennsylvania objected to the proposition that any further restrictions be placed on House membership, and cited the service of William Pitt equally a counterexample. Pitt, who held role at the time of the Convention, was the youngest prime minister in British history at the age of 24. Withal, Mason's amendment passed seven states to three.
The House and Its Members
Article I, section 5 of the Constitution provides the Business firm with the authority to determine whether Members-elect are qualified to be seated. For example, William Claiborne of Tennessee became the youngest person to always serve in the House when he was elected and seated in 1797 at the historic period of 22. The Firm also seated Claiborne at the age of 24, when he won re-ballot. The House, nevertheless, has not always been so lenient. Representative John Young Brown of Kentucky was first elected to the House in the 36th Congress (1859–1861) when he was 24, simply the House refused to administer the oath of office to him until he was 25—later on the first session of the Congress was over.
For Further Reading
Farrand, Max, ed. The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787. Rev. ed. 4 vols. New Oasis and London: Yale University Press, 1937.
Madison, James, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay. The Federalist Papers. New York: Penguin Books, 1987.
Story, Joseph. Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States. 3 vols. Boston, 1833.
Source: https://history.house.gov/Institution/Origins-Development/Constitutional-Qualifications/
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