Seventy-second_Congress

72nd United States Congress

72nd United States Congress

1931–1933 U.S. Congress

The 72nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives.[1][2] It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1931, to March 4, 1933, during the last two years of Herbert Hoover's presidency. The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the 1910 United States census. The Senate had a Republican majority. The House started with a very slim Republican majority, but by the time it first met in December 1931, the Democrats had gained a majority through special elections.

Quick Facts March 4, 1931 – March 4, 1933, Members ...

Major events

See also: 1931 in the United States, 1932 in the United States, and 1933 in the United States

Major legislation

Main article: List of United States federal legislation § 72nd United States Congress

Constitutional amendments

Party summary

The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this Congress, and includes members from vacancies and newly admitted states, when they were first seated. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.

Senate

More information Party (shading shows control), Total ...

House of Representatives

More information Affiliation, Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) ...

Leadership

President of the Senate
Charles Curtis (R)

Senate

Majority (Republican)

Minority (Democratic)

House of Representatives

House Speaker John Garner (D)

Note: Republican Nicholas Longworth, the Speaker of the House in the previous Congress, was Speaker-presumptive with his party's mere three-seat majority. However, Longworth died on April 9, 1931, and by the time the 72nd Congress convened in December 1931, Democrats had gained four seats from Republicans through special elections following deaths, thus becoming the majority party in the House. Democrat John Garner was subsequently elected as Speaker.[4]

Majority (Democratic)

Minority (Republican)

Members

This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed by class, and representatives are listed by district.

Senate

Senators were elected every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election. In this Congress, Class 1 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1934; Class 2 meant their term began with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1936; and Class 3 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1932.

House of Representatives

The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide on the general ticket or otherwise at-large, are preceded by an "At-large," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.

More information House seats by party holding plurality in state ...

Changes in membership

Senate

  • Replacements: 11
  • Deaths: 6
  • Resignations: 1
  • Interim appointments: 5
  • Total seats with changes: 8
More information State (class), Vacated by ...

House of Representatives

  • Replacements: 23
  • Deaths: 24
  • Resignations: 7
  • Contested election: 1
  • Total seats with changes: 32
More information District, Vacated by ...

Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.

Joint committees

Caucuses

Employees

Legislative branch agency directors

Senate

House of Representatives

See also

Notes

  1. Huey Long (D-Louisiana) was elected in November 1930 to a Senate term beginning March 4, 1931; however, he chose not to assume office until January 25, 1932, when his term as governor of Louisiana ended.[5]
  2. When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.

References

  1. [1]
    Herring, E. Pendleton (1933). "Second Session of the Seventy-second Congress, December 5, 1932, to March 4, 1933". American Political Science Review. 27 (3): 404–422. doi:10.2307/1947439. ISSN 0003-0554.
  2. [2]
    Herring, E. Pendleton (1932). "First Session of the Seventy-second Congress, December 7, 1931, to July 16, 1932". American Political Science Review. 26 (5): 846–874. doi:10.2307/1947141. ISSN 0003-0554.
  3. [3]
    "Women in the Senate". senate.gov. Washington, D.C.: Office of the Secretary of the Senate. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  4. [4]
    Glass, Andrew (December 7, 2009). "The 72nd Congress convenes, Dec. 7, 1931". politico.com. Arlington, Virginia: Politico. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  5. [5]
    "Dictionary of Louisiana Biography: Dictionary L". lahistory.org. Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Louisiana Historical Association. Archived from the original on December 1, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  • Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
  • Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
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