Posts by Dr. Eric Ostermeier
Seeing Double
On Wednesday, Democrats Doug Jones of Alabama and Tina Smith of Minnesota will be seated in the U.S. Senate. This marks the first time in U.S. history that two members of the chamber will be seated at the exact midway point of a particular Congress (March 4th of an even-numbered year through the 72nd Congress…
Read MoreMontana Could Make History After 2020 Reapportionment
No state’s U.S. House delegation has ever increased from a single, at-large representative to multiple members after two censuses.
Read More14 of a Kind
When Alabama Democrat Doug Jones is sworn into the U.S. Senate in the coming days he will become the 14th sitting member who won his or her first election to the chamber via special election. Jones will join California Democrat Dianne Feinstein (1992), Oklahoma Republicans James Inhofe (1994) and James Lankford (2014), Oregon Democrat Ron…
Read MoreMinnesota On Eve of Rare Governor and Lieutenant Governor Partisan Split
The top two constitutional offices in the Gopher State have been occupied by members of different political parties for 3,759 days since statehood (10+ years).
Read MorePaul Ryan and the Longest-Serving US Representatives in Wisconsin History
Ryan is currently #20 in all-time service and will sit at #17 at the close of the 115th Congress.
Read MoreKeeping Up With the Joneses
Alabama Democrat Doug Jones will be the ninth ‘Jones’ sworn into the U.S. Senate and the first to serve in the chamber in 85+ years. The last Jones in the U.S. Senate was Washington Republican Wesley Jones who served from 1909 until his death in 1932. The remaining Joneses are Georgia Jeffersonian Republican George Jones…
Read MoreEight Is Enough: Alabama Democrats Make the Record Books
Doug Jones’ victory marks just the sixth time out of 56 attempts that an eight-election partisan U.S. Senate winning streak has come to an end during the direct election era.
Read MoreMinnesota to Become 6th State with Women Holding Both US Senate Seats
After Tina Smith is sworn in, four states will have all-female U.S. Senate delegations.
Read MoreThe Shortest-Serving U.S. Senators in Alabama History
Ten of the state’s 41 men and women who were sworn into the chamber served less than one year.
Read MoreMinnesota 2018: How Often Do States Host Elections for Both US Senate Seats?
Next year will be the 55th time in which a state simultaneously hosts elections for each of its U.S. Senate seats; in only eight cases has the electorate split its vote between two parties.
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