A matter of time

59.5

The average age of a member of the 117th Congress when taking office, according to data provided by the Congressional Research Service. As the United States gets older, its congressional representatives do too. According to U.S. Census data, the United States’ median age increased from 37.2 to 38.4 between 2010 and 2019. The average age of a U.S. representative in the 111th Congress was 57.2 years. The average age of a senator was 63.1 years. Fast-forward to the 117th Congress: The average age was 58.4 for U.S. representatives and 64.3 for senators

66

The number of baby ­boomers in the 100-member United States Senate. Eleven senators are members of the older Silent Generation. Boomers made up just over 20 percent of the American population in 2020.

96%

The share of members of Congress who hold college degrees. Just 23.4 percent of Americans over age 25 hold bachelor’s degrees, according to the Census Bureau.

143

The number of female ­senators and representatives, constituting just 26.7 percent of Congress’ members.

11

The average tenure in years of senators in the 117th Congress, compared with an average tenure of 4.1 years for salaried American ­workers, according to the Department of Labor.