U.S. Congress — 118th Congress
The 118th United States Congress will convene on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023, and adjourn on Jan. 3, 2025. The two calendar years are divided into sessions, with the first session of the congress occuring in the odd-numbered year and the second session occuring in the even-numbered year.
Unlike the Texas Legislature, which works to fit two years' worth of business into 140 days, the United States Congress meets throughout the two years with periods of recess. A calendar for each year/session of the congress is set to notify members of the expected dates for votes; but the chamber leadership can make adjustments to this schedule.
The full Congress has 435 voting members in the House of Representatives and 100 members in the Senate. The House has six additional non-voting members.
In the current (117th) Congress, Democrats have a majority in both chambers. While no party has clearly clenched a majority yet, most projections expect a narrow Republican majority in the House for the 118th Congress, while the Senate remains too close to predict.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the numbers for the 118th Congress stand at:
- House — 184 Democrats, 207 Republicans
» 218 seats are required to hold a majority.
» 44 seats are still to be determined or too close to call.
- Senate — 48 Democrats, 49 Republicans
» 51 seats are required to hold a majority.
» 3 seats are too close to call.
The sole Aggie in the U.S. House for the 118th will be Ronny Jackson ’91, representing TX-13 for a second term.
In the U.S. Senate, an additional former student — Kelly Tshibaka ’99 — has potential to represent Alaska.
Elections are run by the states, and Alaska's electoral system allowed for four major-party candidates to appear on the November ballot. Additionally, in 2022, Alaska instituted a new voting system to allow for "ranked choice" voting.
While this seat has been called as a "safe" Republican hold, two Republicans — Tshibaka and incumbent Senator Lisa Murkowski — are too close to declare a winner. Read more about this unique election here.
In a future update, we'll provide more in-depth information on how the chamber leaders — including the Speaker of the House — are determined.
