MADISONCENTER FOR AMERICAN LEADERSHIP
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The Constitution,
connected.

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The constitutional text

Article I · Section 2

Select any highlighted phrase to understand what it means.

The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

[Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.]* The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct. The Number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New-York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.

When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.

The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

Source: National Constitution Center edition. Original wording is preserved; commentary explains historical and superseded provisions.

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You don’t have to understand everything at once. One connection is a good beginning.

LOOK A LITTLE CLOSER

Article I, Section 2, Clause 2

Qualifications for House service

Current text
No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen. [

What it means

A representative must be at least twenty-five, have seven years of United States citizenship, and inhabit the electing state when elected. These are eligibility rules for office, distinct from qualifications to vote.

Historical setting

The Constitution sets a younger age and shorter citizenship requirement for the House than for the Senate. Federalist 62 connected the Senate’s higher thresholds to its expected experience and responsibilities.

What it does

The text requires state inhabitancy, not residence in a congressional district. Naturalized citizens can qualify after the specified period, unlike the presidency’s different citizenship rule.

Debate & interpretation

Fixed qualifications reduce opportunities to exclude political rivals through shifting demands for wealth, occupation, or ideology. The larger institutional question is how much qualification should be predetermined and how much judgment should remain with voters.

A common misreading

A candidate does not need to have been a citizen since birth, own property, or live in the particular district under this constitutional clause.

Think it through

What is gained and lost when eligibility rests on easily verified thresholds rather than a test of competence?

Follow the connection

Sources & further reading

Original Madison Center commentary. Explanations distinguish the text, historical context, and interpretive disagreements.

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