Some problems with Congress, in graphs

[True Dough]

[LearnedHand]

1. Spot. On.

[kxs]

2. Source?

Looking for a way to confirm the #s before recommending.

[Conjuay]

4. I really don't believe there is reason to doubt these numbers.

Which to you believe is inaccurate?

[CrispyQ]

10. I saw this graphic many years ago, so I wonder if it's updated or if someone just trotted out the old graphic. ???

Although I'm sure the number of millionaires in congress hasn't gone down.

[Xavier Breath]

11. I imagine it's close enough.

And by now, probably worse.

[paleotn]

25. Until confirmed with a source or sources, yes, there is.

And "believe" doesn't have anything to do with that. It may feel right and very well may be. I wouldn't at all be surprised. But we do trend towards things that confirm our preconceived notions and give far less burden of proof to them than things that might challenge our thoughts.

I've seen more than a few posts here that got tons of likes simply because it fits the group narrative. Turned out the data was inaccurate.

[live love laugh]

17. Confirm it yourself by validating any one of the categories.... women for instance.

[Conjuay]

3. If that isn't the most telling condemnation of our present situation-

"We the (Rich, white, wealthy, 'established') People".

[SharonClark]

5. Article from 2019 vetting this graft.

It seems it was outdated even in 2019. . .

VERIFY: Does a viral graphic show 'The problem with Congress?'
A viral chart is going around online claiming that "the problem with Congress" could be the percentages of millionaires, white men and members older than 55.
. . .
An image circling around on Facebook and social media has a compelling headline:

“The problem with Congress explained in one graph.”

It has eight pie charts in a graphic and compares Congress to Americans on the basis of how many millionaires there are, how many white men there are, how many women there are and how many of them are over the age of 55.

The only problem, the numbers are either outdated or wrong.
. . .

Source: https://www.kgw.com/article/news/verify/verify-false-viral-claim-about-the-problem-with-congress/507-ae1c3ce4-b8ee-4406-8ede-0f6af1111f1c

[elocs]

6. Members of Congress are elected.

So how did 10x more members of Congress who are millionaires get elected compared to the general population?
If women are 51% of the population and electorate, why is only 20% of Congress female?
(Could it be that many women choose not to vote for a woman?)
And 2/3 of Congress are over 55, but over 55 is only 28% of the population is over 55 so who are electing these people?
The problem with Congress is who chooses to vote for the candidates.

The old quote how there are lies, damned lies, and statistic should also include graphs.

[CousinIT]

7. One verification source says:

NOTE that this link and its information were posted in 2019 and refer to the 116th Congress, NOT today's Congress, so that would certainly change some of the metrics. However the graphic referenced is the same one as the OP

https://www.kgw.com/article/news/verify/verify-false-viral-claim-about-the-problem-with-congress/507-ae1c3ce4-b8ee-4406-8ede-0f6af1111f1c

THE QUESTION:
Are the numbers posted in the image above accurate? Are 51% of Congress millionaires? Are 77% of Congressional members white men? Is just 20% of Congress made up of women? Is 67% of Congress 55 or older?

THE ANSWER:
No, a few of the numbers aren’t far off, but none of them accurately reflects the data for the 116th Congress that is currently in session.

The numbers for Congressional members who are millionaires and the percentage of white men in Congress have both decreased.

The percentage of women in Congress and of lawmakers older than 55 have both gone up.

WHAT WE FOUND:
The image claims that 51% of Congress are millionaires.

Data from Rollcall.com, which has been tracking the net worth of Congressional members since about 1990, shows that the number is lower. Their data shows that only about two-fifths of Congress has a net worth of one million dollars or more.

That’s about 38-40% of Congress, not 51%.

Next, the claim that 77% of Congressional members are white men. That number is exaggerated by about 10-13 percent.

Pew Research Center Data shows that 77% number is actually the percentage of all white members of Congress - including women.

So, white men aren’t 77% of Congress, the actual number is closer to 62%.

Next, the total number of women in Congress. The image says 20% are women but data from Legistorm show that is incorrect.

Legistorm is a database that collects Congressional information and they show that the House of Representatives is about 24% female and the Senate is about 25% female. That’s not the biggest difference, but it is more than the 20% shown in the image.

Finally, the claim about age. The image says that 67% of Congress is older than 55.

Legistorm data shows that number is actually low. According to their records, about 87 Senators and 343 Representatives are over 50.

[True Dough]

15. Thanks for this

While the OP is not on the mark and outdated, others in this thread have posted great sources of info that is pertinent.

[Linda ladeewolf]

8. You wanted graphs, pie charts are easier.

https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/03/03/the-changing-face-of-congress-in-7-charts/

[CrispyQ]

12. Thank you! Great info! -nt

[True Dough]

13. That's much more accurate and up-to-date data

Thanks for the link!

[Martin Eden]

9. Was everyone below age 25 or 30 excluded from the last graph?

You have to be at least 25 for the House, and 30 for the Senate. Also, it can takes years to build a political career before being elected to federal office. Experience is usually a good qualification.

[edhopper]

14. I looked up that stat

over 55 is about 40% to 45% of the population age eligible for Congress. And it is a rare person under 30 who is.

[Martin Eden]

16. As I thought, the last graph in the OP does not indicate any inequity

Thanks for checking the demographic.

[Cirsium]

18. Blaming old people

Blaming old people was stupid and lazy in the 60s - "never trust anyone over 30!" - and it is stupid and lazy now.

[ihaveaquestion]

20. I blame old people and I AM and old person! I'm a boomer and can't stand to be around most of my own generation.

Many of the old people I know (I know lots) are bigoted, cranky and uninterested in facts or even being factual in their opinions. They fear change or anything new, and sometimes it's pretty much everything. Older people get symptoms of dementia earlier than anyone thinks and unless they are vigilant they become anxious and fearful. That's scary to me and I watch my own behavior closely and have asked my family to alert me if I seem like I'm slipping.

I find the younger generations much more likeable, friendly and kind and I believe Gen-Z will save us all from ourselves. Boomers are the worst... I don't know what happened to most of my generation - who protested against the Vietnam war, and for social justice issues. They flipped somehow.

[Cirsium]

23. Wow

Find a different crowd to hang with. Seriously. Your post is disgusting.

[MineralMan]

24. Only a small minority of baby boomers actively

protested against the Vietnam War. If you asked the ones who did if they still feel the same way, they will tell you that they do. I certainly still feel that way, I guarantee.

You're sampling that generation inaccurately, I'm afraid. Also, I know plenty of young people who are not at all like the ones you describe, so maybe you are sampling them incorrectly as well.

[ihaveaquestion]

26. You have no idea of who I know or 'sample'.

I'd discuss this with you further, but you've shown yourself to be a troll on other postings of mine in the past and I simply don't want to give you the oxygen.

Bugger Off!

[ClaudetteCC]

21. Yes, I expect they are older than the general population.

It takes quite a few years of 'paint the fence, wax the car' time to get to where you have enough experience and backing to become one of the 535.
I would also expect many are wealthier than average as many people pursuing higher office have law degrees and have had various side businesses along the way.

[spooky3]

19. I'd like to see another graph or two

1) currently married vs not—I’d predict Congresspeople are more likely than the general population to be married

2) children vs not—I’d predict Congresspeople are more likely than the general population to be parents

[MaineBlueBear]

22. It's a graphic graphic

That's for sure.

It's been worse, too. Yet, despite that, things were slowly getting better. I don't blame the metrics but I believe that there's more to the story. We're not getting the story, so I have to blame the media.

[snot]

27. More:

Via Represent.Us at https://act.represent.us/sign/problempoll-fba/ :

"Professors Martin Gilens (Princeton University) and Benjamin I. Page (Northwestern University) looked at more than 20 years worth of data to answer a simple question: Does the government represent the people?

"Their study took data from nearly 2000 public opinion surveys and compared it to the policies that ended up becoming law. In other words, they compared what the public wanted to what the government actually did. What they found was extremely unsettling: The opinions of 90% of Americans have essentially no impact at all.

"This video gives a quick rundown of their findings — it all boils down to one simple graph:" {link to video:

&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fact.represent.us%2F&embeds_referring_origin=https%3A%2F%2Fact.represent.us&source_ve_path=Mjg2NjY ,

...or you can find the study itself online at https://www.princeton.edu/~mgilens/idr.pdf .

[whoameye]

28. Here's the biggest problem in Congress

https://www.opensecrets.org/elections-overview/reelection-rates

It's up to us to fix that

[a kennedy]

31. Hey whoameye, you are so NEW.....how'd ya hear about DU???

Curious.

[Godot51]

29. And...

... we intend to keep it this way.

Or better yet, achieve a 100% rich, white, male, over middle aged, congress, as it should be!

So there!

[pansypoo53219]

30. wi's herb kohl was a good rich D.

[a kennedy]

32. Damn right, he was one of the good rich guys.