The posts of shadow United States senator and shadow United States representative are held by elected or appointed government officials from subnational polities of the United States that lack congressional vote. While these officials are not seated in either chamber of Congress, they seek recognition for their subnational polity, up to full statehood. This would enfranchise them with full voting rights on the floor of the US House and Senate, alongside existing states. As of 2021 [update] , only the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico currently have authorized shadow delegations to Congress.
Historically, shadow members of Congress were elected by organized incorporated territories prior to their admission to the Union. [1] From its origins in Tennessee, this approach is sometimes known as the Tennessee Plan. [2]
The first shadow senators, William Blount and William Cocke of the Southwest Territory, were elected in March 1796 before being seated as senators representing the newly formed state of Tennessee. Michigan, California, Minnesota, Oregon, and Alaska likewise elected shadow senators before statehood. The Alaska Territory also elected the first shadow U.S. representative, Ralph Julian Rivers, in 1956. All were eventually seated in Congress as voting members, except for Alaska shadow senator William A. Egan, who instead became governor. [1]
Territory | Office | Name | Elected | Seated |
---|---|---|---|---|
Southwest (now Tennessee) | Senator | William Blount | Mar 28, 1796 | Dec 6, 1796 |
Senator | William Cocke | |||
Michigan | Senator | Lucius Lyon | Nov 10, 1835 | Jan 26, 1837 |
Senator | John Norvell | |||
California | Senator | William M. Gwin | Dec 20, 1849 | Sep 10, 1850 |
Senator | John C. Frémont | |||
Minnesota | Senator | James Shields | Dec 19, 1857 | May 12, 1858 |
Oregon | Senator | Joseph Lane | Jul 5, 1858 | Feb 14, 1859 |
Senator | Delazon Smith | |||
Alaska | Senator | Ernest Gruening | Oct 6, 1956 | Jan 7, 1959 |
Senator | William A. Egan | Elected governor in 1958 | ||
Representative | Ralph J. Rivers | Jan 7, 1959 |
The election of shadow congresspersons from the District of Columbia is authorized by a state constitution ratified by D.C. voters in 1982 but was never approved by Congress. [3]
The voters of the District of Columbia elect two shadow U.S. senators who are known as senators by the District of Columbia but are not officially sworn in or seated by the U.S. Senate. Shadow U.S. senators were first elected in 1990.
The current shadow United States senators from the District of Columbia are Paul Strauss and Mike Brown. [4]
Class 1 Class 1 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle recently contested in 1994, 2000, 2006, 2012, and 2018. The next election will be in 2024 election. | C | Class 2 Class 2 U.S. senators belong to the electoral cycle recently contested in 1996, 2002, 2008, 2014, and 2020. The next election will be in 2026. | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
# | Senator | Party | Dates in office | Electoral history | T | T | Electoral history | Dates in office | Party | Senator | # | |
1 | Florence Pendleton | Democratic | Jan 3, 1991 – Jan 3, 2007 | Elected in 1990. | 1 | 102nd | 1 | Elected in 1990. Retired. | Jan 3, 1991 – Jan 3, 1997 | Democratic | Jesse Jackson | 1 |
103rd | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 1994. | 2 | 104th | ||||||||||
105th | 2 | Elected in 1996. | Jan 3, 1997 – present | Democratic | Paul Strauss | 2 | ||||||
106th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 2000. Was not re-nominated as a Democrat. Lost re-election bid as an independent. | 3 | 107th | ||||||||||
108th | 3 | Re-elected in 2002. | ||||||||||
109th | ||||||||||||
2 | Mike Brown | Democratic | Jan 3, 2007 – present | Elected in 2006. | 4 | 110th | ||||||
111th | 4 | Re-elected in 2008. | ||||||||||
112th | ||||||||||||
Re-elected in 2012. | 5 | 113th | ||||||||||
Independent | 114th | 5 | Re-elected in 2014. | |||||||||
Democratic | 115th | |||||||||||
Re-elected in 2018. Retiring at end of term. | 6 | 116th | ||||||||||
117th | 6 | Re-elected in 2020. | ||||||||||
118th | ||||||||||||
To be determined in the 2024 election. | 7 | 119th | ||||||||||
# | Senator | Party | Years in office | Electoral history | T | C | T | Electoral history | Years in office | Party | Senator | # |
Class 1 | Class 2 |
The voters of the District of Columbia elect one shadow representative who is recognized as equivalent to U.S. representatives by the District of Columbia but is not recognized by the U.S. government as an actual member of the House of Representatives. A shadow representative was first elected in 1990. Inaugural office-holder Charles Moreland held the seat for two terms. In November 2020, Oye Owolewa was elected to succeed retiring shadow representative Franklin Garcia.
D.C.'s shadow U.S. representative should not be confused with the non-voting delegate who represents the district in Congress.
The posts of shadow representatives and senators for Puerto Rico were created in 2017 as part of a newly formed Puerto Rico Equality Commission [5] to fulfill campaign promises made by the New Progressive Party, which gained control of both the executive and legislative branch in the 2016 elections in part with calls for a status referendum in 2017. Pro-statehood governor Ricardo Rosselló appointed five shadow representatives and two shadow senators [6] with the advice and consent of the Senate of Puerto Rico. [7]
Following the pro-statehood vote in the 2020 Puerto Rican status referendum, the Puerto Rican legislature passed in a lame duck session Law 167 of 2020, [8] replacing the Puerto Rico Equality Commission with the new Commission to the Congressional Delegation of Puerto Rico and establishing an electoral process for shadow delegates to Congress. Although an effort to overturn Law 167 passed the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico in early 2021 after the Popular Democratic Party gained control of the legislature, it did not have enough votes to sustain a threatened veto from pro-statehood governor Pedro Pierluisi. [9] [10]
Popular elections for two shadow senators and four shadow members of Congress will be held on a nonpartisan basis every four years, with the first election held on May 16, 2021, so the delegates can take office on July 1. The law also appropriated funds for the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration to cover the wages of the delegates and serve as their headquarters in Washington, D.C., where they will work on the statehood process with the island's resident commissioner in Congress. [11]
Class The terms for Puerto Rico's shadow senators are not aligned with the classes of United States senators. | C | Class The terms for Puerto Rico's shadow senators are not aligned with the classes of United States senators. | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
# | Senator | Party | Dates in office | Electoral history | T | T | Electoral history | Dates in office | Party | Senator | # | |
1 | Zoraida Fonalledas | New Progressive/ Republican | Aug 15, 2017 – Jul 1, 2021 | Appointed in 2017. Successor elected. | 1 | 115th | 1 | Appointed in 2017. Died. | Aug 15, 2017 – May 2, 2021 | New Progressive/ Democratic | Carlos Romero Barceló | 1 |
116th | ||||||||||||
117th | ||||||||||||
— | May 2, 2021 – Jul 1, 2021 | Vacant | ||||||||||
2 | Melinda Romero Donnelly | New Progressive/ Democratic | July 1, 2021 – present | Elected in 2021. | 2 | 2 | Elected in 2021. | Jul 1, 2021 – present | New Progressive/ Republican | Zoraida Buxó | 2 | |
118th | ||||||||||||
# | Senator | Party | Years in office | Electoral history | T | C | T | Electoral history | Years in office | Party | Senator | # |
Class | Class |
Years | Cong. | Shadow House members | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Member | Party | Member | Party | Member | Party | Member | Party | Member | Party | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
August 15, 2017 – January 6, 2018 | 115th | Luis Fortuño | New Progressive/ Republican | Charlie Rodríguez | New Progressive/ Democratic | Iván Rodríguez | Independent | Pedro Rosselló | New Progressive/ Democratic | Felix A. Santoni | New Progressive/ Republican | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
January 6, 2018 – August 20, 2018 | Alfonso Aguilar | New Progressive/ Republican | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
August 20, 2018 – July 22, 2019 | Luis Berríos-Amadeo | Independent | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
July 22, 2019 – February 26, 2020 | 116th | Vacant | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
February 26, 2020 – July 1, 2021 | Vacant | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
117th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
July 1, 2021 – June 26, 2023 | Elizabeth Torres Rodriguez | New Progressive/ Republican | Ricardo Rosselló | New Progressive/ Democratic | Roberto Lefranc Fortuño | New Progressive/ Republican | María Meléndez | New Progressive/ Democratic | Seat eliminated | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
118th | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
June 26, 2023 – July 17, 2023 | Vacant [12] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
July 17, 2023 – present | Vacant |
The resident commissioner of Puerto Rico is a non-voting member of the United States House of Representatives elected by the voters of the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico every four years, the only member of the House of Representatives who serves a four-year term. Because the commissioner represents the entire territory of Puerto Rico irrespective of its population, and is not subject to congressional apportionment like those House members representing the 50 states, Puerto Rico's at-large congressional district is the largest congressional district by population in all of the United States.
The District of Columbia statehood movement is a political movement that advocates making the District of Columbia a U.S. state, to provide the residents of the District of Columbia with voting representation in the Congress and complete control over local affairs.
Voting rights of citizens in the District of Columbia differ from the rights of citizens in the 50 U.S. states. The United States Constitution grants each state voting representation in both houses of the United States Congress. It defines the federal district as being outside of any state, and does not grant it any voting representation in Congress. The Constitution grants Congress exclusive jurisdiction over the District in "all cases whatsoever".
Jenniffer Aydin González Colón is a Puerto Rican politician who serves as the 20th Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. González has served in leadership positions in the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (PNP) and in the Republican Party of the United States. These positions included being the chairwoman of the Puerto Rico Republican Party, speaker and minority leader of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico, and vice-chair of the PNP. González is the youngest person to be Resident Commissioner and the first woman to hold the role.
The District of Columbia holds general elections every two years to fill various D.C. government offices, including mayor, attorney general, members of the D.C. Council, members of the D.C. State Board of Education, and members of its Advisory Neighborhood Commissions. Special elections may be held to fill vacancies at other points in time. Additionally, citywide ballot measures may be proposed and voted on.
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sovereignty with the federal government. Due to this shared sovereignty, Americans are citizens both of the federal republic and of the state in which they reside. State citizenship and residency are flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states, except for persons restricted by certain types of court orders.
The District of Columbia Democratic State Committee is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the District of Columbia.
The Puerto Rico statehood movement aims to make Puerto Rico a state of the United States. Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territorial possession of the United States acquired in 1898 following the Spanish–American War, making it "the oldest colony in the modern world". As of 2023, the population of Puerto Rico is 3.2 million, around half the average state population and higher than that of 19 U.S. states. Statehood is one of several competing options for the future political status of Puerto Rico, including: maintaining its current status, becoming fully independent, or becoming a freely associated state. Puerto Rico has held six referendums on the topic. These are non-binding, as the power to grant statehood lies with the US Congress. The most recent referendum was in November 2020, with a majority (52.52%) of those who voted opting for statehood.
There are differing points of view on whether Puerto Rico's current political status as a territory of the United States should change. Four major viewpoints emerge in principle: that Puerto Rico maintains its current status, becomes a US state, becomes fully independent, or becomes a freely associated state.
On March 23, 1971, the District of Columbia held a special election for its non-voting House delegate representing the District of Columbia's at-large congressional district. This was the first election for the newly re-created district since Norton P. Chipman briefly held the seat during the Reconstruction Era. The winner of the race was Walter E. Fauntroy, a Democrat. After serving his remaining term in the 92nd United States Congress, he would continue to be re-elected until he stepped down to run for mayor in the 1990 election.
On November 7, 1972, the District of Columbia held an election for its non-voting House delegate representing the District of Columbia's at-large congressional district. The winner of the race was Walter E. Fauntroy (D), who won his first re-election after winning the special election in the previous year. All elected members would serve in 93rd United States Congress.
On November 5, 1974, the District of Columbia held an election for its non-voting House delegate representing the District of Columbia's at-large congressional district. The winner of the race was Walter E. Fauntroy (D), who won his second re-election. Independent candidate James G. Banks surprised many by taking second place, ahead of William R. Phillips (R) and D.C. Statehood Party candidate Anton V. Wood. All elected members would serve in 94th United States Congress.
A referendum on statehood for the District of Columbia was held on November 8, 2016. It was the first referendum on statehood to be held in the district. The District of Columbia was created following the passage of the Residence Act on July 9, 1790, which approved the creation of a national capital, the City of Washington on the Potomac River.
The 2021 United States elections were held in large part on Tuesday, November 2, 2021. This off-year election included the regular gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia. In addition, state legislative elections were held for the New Jersey Legislature and Virginia House of Delegates, along with numerous state legislative special elections, citizen initiatives, mayoral races, and a variety of other local elections. Six special elections to the United States House of Representatives also took place on November 2 or earlier as a result of either deaths or vacancies. The first of these was held on March 20.
A referendum of the status of Puerto Rico was held on November 3, 2020, concurrently with the general election. The Referendum was announced by Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced on May 16, 2020. This was the sixth referendum held on the status of Puerto Rico, with the previous one having taken place in 2017. This was the first referendum with a simple yes-or-no question, with voters having the option of voting for or against becoming a U.S. state. The New Progressive Party (PNP), of whom Vázquez is a member, supports statehood, while the opposition Popular Democratic Party (PDP) and Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) oppose it.
The Washington, D.C., Admission Act, often referred to simply as the D.C. Admission Act, is a bill introduced during the 116th United States Congress. The bill would grant Washington, D.C., admission into the Union as a state. The bill was originally introduced in the 116th Congress on January 3, 2019, and was reintroduced on January 4, 2021, and January 9, 2023, in the 117th and 118th Congresses. The United States House of Representatives passed it on April 22, 2021.
The Puerto Rico Status Act, H.R. 2757, was a bill introduced during the 116th United States Congress. The intention of the bill is to grant Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States, admission into the Union as a state. The bill was originally introduced in the 116th Congress and was reintroduced as H.R. 1522, on March 2, 2021, in the 117th Congress. It was referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources with last action taken on June 16.
A special election to elect shadow senators and shadow representatives from Puerto Rico was held on May 16, 2021. Voters chose two special delegates to the United States Senate and four special delegates to the United States House of Representatives. Their work is to demand that the US Congress respect and enforce the results of the 2020 status referendum, and admit Puerto Rico as the 51st state of the Union.
The District of Columbia is a political division coterminous with Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. According to the Article One of the Constitution, only states may be represented in the United States Congress. The District of Columbia is not a U.S. state and therefore has no voting representation.
The District of Columbia is a political division coterminous with Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. According to the Article One of the Constitution, only states may be represented in the United States Congress. The District of Columbia is not a U.S. state and therefore has no voting representation in the United States Senate. However, it does have a non-voting delegate to represent it in the House.