Changes

A famous -- and often overlooked -- observation about politics this this:  "all politics is local."  The media (television, national newspapers, and even the internet) tend to cover national personalities and issues, but it is at a local level (your own town, legislative district, or even state) where the most important political decisions occur.  It is at the local level where an individual can have the greatest influence in making the community a better place.

A famous -- and often overlooked -- observation about politics this this:  "all politics is local."  The media (television, national newspapers, and even the internet) tend to cover national personalities and issues, but it is at a local level (your own town, legislative district, or even state) where the most important political decisions occur.  It is at the local level where an individual can have the greatest influence in making the community a better place.

The legislature is largely defined by local politics, and rightly so.  In New Jersey each resident has two Assemblymen and one Senator representing him in the statehouse, and one member of the House of Representatives and two Senators representing him in Congress.  Although both the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate are part of "Congress", the term "congressman" typically applies only to members of the House of Representatives.  So your "congressman" is the elected official who represents your congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The legislature is largely defined by local politics, and rightly so.  In New Jersey each resident has two Assemblymen and one Senator representing him in the statehouse, and one member of the House of Representatives and two Senators representing him in Congress.  Although both the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate are part of "Congress", the term "congressman" typically applies only to members of the House of Representatives.  So your "congressman" is the elected official who represents your congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives.  He is elected every two years on Election Day, and you can have an influence on whether he is reelected or defeated, either in his political party's primary (held in early June in New Jersey) or in the general election in early November.

 

 

Because more than 300 out of 435 Houae of Representatives are "safe seats" controlled by Democrats or Republicans, does that mean the "House" is always controlled by the same political party?  No, because there are still 50-100 seats that are toss-ups on election day, and that is enough to tip the majority to one side or the other.  Due to landslide victories by Republicans in 2010 in the "midterm elections" (elections in a year not divisible by four, such that there is no presidential candidate on the ballot), Republicans have a substantial majority in the "House" in 2012.  But that control could be lost on Election Day.

== Congress ==

== Congress ==