United States Senate, House of Representatives Written in 1787, ratified in 1788, and in operation since 1789, the United States Constitution is the world’s longest surviving written charter of government. Its first three words —“We, The People”— affirm that the government exists to serve its citizens. The supremacy of the people through their elected representatives is recognized in Article I, which creates a Congress consisting of a Senate and a House of Representatives. The positioning of Congress at the beginning of the Constitution reaffirms its status as the first branch of the federal government. The Senate is composed of two senators from each state, elected by voters, for six-year terms. Under the Constitution, each state is entitled to at least one representative. Additional seats are apportioned on the basis of the state’s population. Congress fixes the size of the House of Representatives, and the procedure of apportioning the number among the states. Each state is apportioned its number of representatives by means of the Department of Commerce’s decennial census. South Carolina has six representatives elected by voters to serve two-year terms.
Annual membership meeting takes place today at the Fairfield-Central High School.
Washington Invasion Find out what happens when dozens of S.C. high school students take over Washington, D.C.