United States House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives
115th United States Congress
Seal of the House
Flag of the U.S. House of Representatives
Type
Type	Lower house of the United States Congress
Term limits	None
History
New session started	January 3, 2017 (2017-01-03)
Leadership
Speaker	Paul Ryan (R) Since October 29, 2015
Majority Leader	Kevin McCarthy (R) Since August 1, 2014
Minority Leader	Nancy Pelosi (D) Since January 3, 2011
Majority Whip	Steve Scalise (R) Since August 1, 2014
Minority Whip	Steny Hoyer (D) Since January 3, 2011
Structure
Seats	435 voting members 6 non-voting members
Political groups	Majority (240)      Republican (240) Minority (193)      Democratic (193) Vacant (2)
Length of term	Two years
Elections
Voting system	Plurality
Last election	November 8, 2016
Next election	November 6, 2018
Redistricting	State legislatures or redistricting commissions, varies by state
Meeting place
House of Representatives chamber United States Capitol Washington, D.C., United States
Website
www.house.gov

The United States House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the United States Congress which, along with the Senate, composes the legislature of the United States.

The composition and powers of the House are established by Article One of the United States Constitution. The House is composed of representatives who sit in congressional districts which are allocated to each of the 50 states on a basis of population as measured by the U.S. Census, with each district entitled one representative. Since its inception in 1789, all representatives are elected popularly. The total number of voting representatives is fixed by law at 435. As of the 2010 Census, the largest delegation is that of California, with fifty-three representatives; the smallest is shared by seven states: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming, each with a single representative.

The House is charged with the passage of federal legislation, known as bills, which, after concurrence by the Senate, are sent to the President for consideration. In addition to this basic power, the House has certain exclusive powers of which include the power to initiate all bills related to revenue, the impeachment of federal officers, who are sent to trial in the Senate, and in cases wherein no candidate receives a majority of electors for President, the duty falls upon the House to elect one of the top three recipients of electors for that office, with one vote given to each state for that purpose.