The Role Of Women In Congress

When a candidate officially runs for Congress—whether it is for the U.S. House of Representatives or the Senate—there is always a motivation as to why he or she would make a run for public office on a national level. But behind every political campaign, behind every vote, there is always an aspiration each member of Congress tries to aspire to every day in Washington, D.C. So as far as we know, there can be a list of estimated guesses as to why senators and congressmen/women vote the way they do that generally shape congressional behavior. The following question involves what influences the vote of the average congressman, what are the structure of their lives and what are their fears and aspirations. Generally, each member of Congress is
elected by a majority popular vote during every election cycle and are sent to represent their constituents on issues such as the economy, health care, education, agriculture, foreign policy, etc. So I think what influences their stance is if a bill comes up for a vote, the average congressman receives phone calls, letters or emails from their home state beseeching them to vote in favor or against it; especially if they wish to remain in office a little while longer. The average length of duration for a member of the U.S. House of Representative during their first term is two years and is always thinking about the next election, which is directly around the corner, so an average congressman doesn’t have the luxury of time and is mostly swayed by the majority opinion of the public. The duration for first term U.S. Senators, meanwhile, is once every six years and have a lot of time on their hands. So, if he or she wishes to hold on to their seats, both Democrats and Republicans consider the will of the majority of constituents from their respective states before making an official decision. However, sometimes the welfare of the country can have an impact as to how congressmen vote because people with opposing ideological backgrounds tend to see worldwide solutions rather differently. Another hypothesis as to what motivates congressmen is the numerous lobbyist, special interest groups and campaign contributors seeking to change the opinion of a politician’s mind in regards to an issue and/or bill they initially oppose to now suddenly be in favor of—sometimes even vice versa. According to Harvard professor Lawrence Lessig, lobbyists in the modern-day United States play a significant role in the political system. Most, however, tend to portray lobbying as an indirect form of bribery. It’s basically as if lobbyists gather on Capitol Hill as if they’re saying for example, “Senator, I want you to vote against raising the minimum wage. Here’s $5,000 to do so.”