The California State Senate is the

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of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the

California State Capitol The California State Capitol is the seat of the California state government, located in Sacramento, the state capital of California. The building houses the chambers of the California State Legislature, made up of the Assembly and the Senate, a ...

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. Due to a combination of the state's large population and a legislature that has not been expanded since the ratification of the 1879 Constitution, the State Senate has the largest population per state senator ratio of any state legislative house. In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

, California is apportioned 53 U.S. representatives, each representing approximately 704,566 people, while in the California State Senate, each of the 40 state senators represents approximately 931,349 people. This means that California state senators each represent more people than California's members of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

. In the current legislative session, the Democratic Party holds 32 out of the 40 seats, which constitutes a 80% majority, well over the two-thirds supermajority threshold.

History

Following the ratification of the 1879 constitution of California, each house of the legislature was divided into 40 Senate districts and 80 Assembly districts. Such districts being "as nearly equal in population as may be, and composed of contiguous territory". With both Senate and Assembly districts elected one member each. Such districts were also required to preserve political boundaries: "In the formation of such districts, no county, or city and county, shall be divided, unless it contain a sufficient population within itself to form two or more districts; nor shall a part of any county, or of any city and county, be united with any other county, or city and county, in forming any district." Between 1933 and 1967, state legislative districts were drawn according to the "Little Federal Model" by which Assembly seats were drawn according to population and Senate seats were drawn according to county lines. The guidelines were that no Senate district would include more than three

counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

and none would include less than one complete county. This led to the situation of a populous county such as Los Angeles County (1960 population of 6 million) being accorded the same number of state senators (one) as less populous counties such as

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(1960 pop. 397). The Senate districts remained unaltered from 1933 to 1967, regardless of the changes in the population distribution. In '' Reynolds v. Sims'', the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

compelled all states to draw up districts with equal population. As such, boundaries were changed to comply with the ruling.

Leadership

The lieutenant governor is the '' ex officio'' president of the Senate, and may only cast a vote to break a tie. The president pro tempore is elected by the majority party caucus, followed by confirmation of the full Senate. Other leaders, such as the majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective

party caucus A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...

es according to each party's strength in the chamber. The current president pro tempore is Democrat

Toni Atkins Toni Gayle Atkins (born August 1, 1962) is an American politician serving as the 51st and current President pro tempore of the California State Senate since 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the 69th Speaker of th ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

. The minority leader is

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Brian Jones Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English multi-instrumentalist and singer best known as the founder, rhythm/lead guitarist, and original leader of the Rolling Stones. Initially a guitarist, he went on to prov ...

of Santee.

Terms of office

Each state senator represents a population roughly equivalent to the

State of Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

. As a result of Proposition 140 in 1990 and Proposition 28 in 2012, members elected to the legislature prior to 2012 are restricted by term limits to two four-year terms (eight years), while those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years in the legislature in any combination of four-year State Senate or two-year State Assembly terms. Members of the State Senate serve four-year terms. Every two years, half of the Senate's 40 seats are subject to election. This is in contrast to the State Assembly, in which all 80 seats in the Assembly are subject to election every two years.

Meeting chamber

The red tones of the California State Senate Chamber are based on the British House of Lords, which is outfitted in a similar color. The dais rests along a wall shaped like an "E", with its central projection housing the rostrum. The lower tier dais runs across the entire chamber, there are several chairs and computers used by the senate officers, the most prominent seat is reserved for the secretary who calls the roll. The higher tier is smaller, with three chairs, the two largest and most ornate chairs are used by the president pro tempore (right chair) and the lieutenant governor (left chair). The third and smallest chair, placed in the center, is used by the presiding officer (acting in place of the pro tem) and is rarely sat in as the president is expected to stand. There are four other chairs flanking the dais used by the highest non-member officials attending the senate, a foreign dignitary or state officer for example. Each of the 40 senators is provided a desk, microphone and two chairs, one for the senator, another for guests or legislative aides. Almost every decorating element is identical to the Assembly Chamber. Along the cornice appears a portrait of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

and the Latin quotation ''senatoris est civitatis libertatem tueri'' ("It is a senator's duty to protect the liberty of the people").

Composition

Past composition of the Senate

Officers

The Secretary, the Sergeant-at-Arms, and the Chaplain are not members of the Legislature.

Members

*: elected in a special election

Seating chart

Committees

Current committees, chairs and vice chairs include:

Offices

*Senate Office of Research *Senate Office of Demographics *Senate Office of Floor Analysis *Senate Office of International Relations *Senate Office of Oversight and Outcomes

References

External links

* of the California State Senate *
Democratic Caucus
*
Republican Caucus
*
Sergeant-at-Arms

Interactive map of the state senate districts

California legislative district maps
from 1849 to the present {{Authority control 1849 establishments in California Senate State upper houses in the United States