● Who are legislators?

○ Tend to be more wealthy, more status

○ Can they represent average Americans?
● Hannah Pitkins two types of representation
○ Descriptive
■ Reflecting the demographics of the populace
○ Substantive
■ Legislators continuously act as agents for constituents and their interests
○ Evidence?
■ Legislator’s demographic characteristics shape their priorities, positions,
and legislative styles
■ Sharing a common identity strengthens trust between L and C
● Tate 2001
● Gamble 2007
● Education and occupation
○ Lawyers, former public officials, the House members
○ Low status occupations are underrepresented
○ Especially on economic legislations (Carnes 2012)
● Race
○ Blacks are slightly underrepresented, while Latinos and Asians are severe
○ Democrats have better representation than Republicans
○ Equal representation of states doubly disadvantaged minorities
○ Growing descriptive representation benefits minority community
● Gender
○ Women are underrepresented
● Roles
○ Legislator
■ Specialization
■ Sinclair’s unorthodox lawmaking
● Apprenticeship wanes
● New members now serve in multiple committees
● Less log rolling due to polarization
○ Constituency servant
■ Constituent service and pork barreling is better at building reputation
while policy expertise is less noticed by constituents
○ Partisans
■ The power of the majority party in agenda setting and committees
■ Party image for reelection process
■ Roll calls along the party lines
■ Help the party’s candidates
○ Struggle to play the three roles
■ A senator on average sits on three full committees and 7 subcommittees
■ A representative sits on two committees and four subcommittees
○ Seniority matters, specialization and legislative efficiency
 ■ Need patience, bargaining skills, and familiarity with lawmaking process
● Dilemma of representation
○ Whether to take actions popular with constituents or to do what the legislator
believes in
○ Pitkins supports former, Burke supports latter
○ Which one to prioritize?
■ Nation welfare, personal convictions, constituency opinions
● Constituents
○ Supporters
○ Loyalists
○ Intimates
● Homestyles
○ Fenno 1977
○ How legislators present themselves and their records totheir constituents
○ Exhibited personal appearances, newsletters, press releases
○ Affect electoral process
○ Presentation of self
■ One of us
■ Person to person
■ Issue oriented
■ Grimmer 2014
○ Frequent trips
○ Constituency casework
■ Make appeals through letters
● Ritchie and You 2016
● Butler et al. 2012