Upper house
The term upper house refers to one of two state legislative chambers in a bicameral legislature. An upper house, or state senate, is the upper deliberative body, or chamber, in states with a bicameral legislature. A state senate normally has fewer members — usually one-half to one-third as many members — as a state assembly or state house of representatives.
History
Partisan Control, 1992-2013
1992-2013
Praise or blame is extended to political parties for the economic, educational, health and other quality of life outcomes that result from the policies those parties enact into law. To better understand which political party enjoys power in each of the states, Ballotpedia has analyzed state government control from 1992-2013 using the concept of a "partisan trifecta." A partisan trifecta is defined as when a state's governorship and legislative chambers are controlled by the same political party.
The two major political parties claim that their policies will lead to better outcomes. What does the data show?
At Ballotpedia, we explored these issues in a three-part study, Who Runs the States.
Part 1: Partisanship
We identified the party holding each state's upper legislative chamber for the majority of time in each year from 1992 through 2013. Across the 49 states (excluding Nebraska) with partisan legislatures, there were 541 years (50.2%) of Democratic control and 517 years (48%) of Republican control.
The trifecta analysis over this period shows a notable trend toward one-party control of state governments. At the outset of the study period (1992), 18 states had trifectas while 31 states had divided governments. In 2013, only 13 states had divided governments, while single-party trifectas hold sway in 36 states, the most in the 22 years we studied. The number of states with trifectas doubled between 1992 and 2013.
The trifecta analysis also allowed us to identify seven states that have experienced dramatic changes in partisan state government control from the first 11 years of the study to the last 11 years of the study. Studying the partisan composition of state governments as we do also allows a clean way to assess whether a state is "moving red" or "moving blue."
Visualizations
Figure 10: Visualization of Trifectas from 1992-2013 -- Alabama-Missouri
Figure 11: Visualization of Trifectas from 1992-2013 -- Montana-Wyoming
Figure 19: Visualization of State Partisanship (with Presidential voting) from 1992-2013 -- Alabama-Missouri
Figure 20: Visualization of State Partisanship (with Presidential voting) from 1992-2013 -- Montana-Wyoming
Infographic
| Infographic of Partisanship Results | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 This infographic was created by Attwood Digital | |||||
Comparison of state upper houses
| Chamber article | Members | Party control | Term Length | Term Limit | Session start date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii State Senate | 25 | Democrat | 2-4-4 year system | None | January 17, 2024 | $60,180/year + per diem |
| Idaho State Senate | 35 | Republican | 2 years | None | January 8, 2024 | $16,684/year + per diem |
| Indiana State Senate | 50 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 8, 2024 | $32,070.24/year + per diem |
| Kentucky State Senate | 38 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 2, 2024 | $188.22/calendar day during session for legislators whose terms began before 2023. $203.28/calendar day for legislators whose terms began after 2023. + per diem |
| Louisiana State Senate | 39 | Republican | 4 years | 3 terms (12 years) | March 11, 2024 | $16,800/year; plus an additional $6,000/year as an unvouchered expense + per diem |
| Maine State Senate | 35 | Democrat | 2 years | 4 terms (8 years) | January 3, 2024 | $16,245.12 for the first regular session. $11,668.32 for the second regular session. + per diem |
| Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) | 49 | Republican | 4 years | 2 terms (8 years) | January 3, 2024 | $12,000/year + per diem |
| Maryland State Senate | 47 | Democrat | 4 years | None | January 10, 2024 | $54,437/year + per diem |
| New Jersey State Senate | 40 | Democrat | 2-4-4 year system | None | January 9, 2024 | $49,000/year |
| New Mexico State Senate | 42 | Democrat | 4 years | None | January 16, 2024 | $0/year + per diem |
| North Carolina State Senate | 50 | Republican | 2 years | None | April 24, 2024 | $13,951/year + per diem and expenses |
| New York State Senate | 63 | Democrat | 2 years | None | January 3, 2024 | $142,000/year + per diem |
| North Dakota State Senate | 47 | Republican | 4 years | 2 terms (8 years) | No regular legislative session | $592/month + per diem |
| South Dakota State Senate | 35 | Republican | 2 years | 4 terms (8 years) | January 9, 2024 | $13,436/year + per diem |
| Tennessee State Senate | 33 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 9, 2024 | $28,405.96/year + per diem |
| Texas State Senate | 31 | Republican | 2-4-4 year system | None | No regular legislative session | $7,200/year + per diem |
| Utah State Senate | 29 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 16, 2024 | $293.55/legislative day + per diem |
| Washington State Senate | 49 | Democrat | 4 years | None | January 9, 2017 | $60,191/year for senators. $61,997/year for representatives. + per diem |
| Wisconsin State Senate | 33 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 16, 2024 | $57,408/year + per diem |
| Wyoming State Senate | 31 | Republican | 4 years | None | February 12, 2024 | $150/day + per diem |
| Alabama State Senate | 35 | Republican | 4 years | None | February 6, 2024 | $59,674.08/year |
| Arizona State Senate | 30 | Republican | 2 years | 4 terms (8 years) | January 8, 2024 | $24,000/year + per diem |
| Arkansas State Senate | 35 | Republican | 2-4-4 year system | 12 consecutive years; can return after a four-year break | April 10, 2024 | $44,356/year + per diem |
| California State Senate | 40 | Democrat | 4 years | 12 years[1][2] | January 3, 2024 | $128,215/year + per diem |
| Colorado State Senate | 35 | Democrat | 4 years | 2 terms (8 years) | January 10, 2024 | $43,977/year for legislators whose terms began in 2023. $41,449/year for legislators whose terms began in 2021. + per diem |
| Connecticut State Senate | 36 | Democrat | 2 years | None | February 7, 2024 | $40,000/year |
| Georgia State Senate | 56 | Republican | 2 years | None | January 8, 2024 | $17,342/year + per diem |
| Massachusetts State Senate | 40 | Democrat | 2 years | None | January 3, 2024 | $73,655.01/year |
| Michigan State Senate | 38 | Democrat | 4 years | 12 combined years in the Legislature | January 10, 2024 | $71,685/year + expenses |
| Minnesota State Senate | 67 | Split | 2-4-4 year system | None | February 12, 2024 | $51,750/year + per diem |
| Mississippi State Senate | 52 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 2, 2024 | $23,500/year + per diem |
| Missouri State Senate | 34 | Republican | 4 years | 2 terms (8 years) | January 3, 2024 | $41,070.14/year + per diem |
| Montana State Senate | 50 | Republican | 4 years | 2 terms (8 years) | No regular legislative session | $104.86/legislative day + per diem |
| New Hampshire State Senate | 24 | Republican | 2 years | None | January 3, 2024 | $100/year |
| Ohio State Senate | 33 | Republican | 4 years | 2 terms (8 years) | January 2, 2024 | $71,099/year |
| Oregon State Senate | 30 | Democrat | 4 years | None | February 5, 2024 | $35,052/year + per diem |
| Pennsylvania State Senate | 50 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 2, 2024 | $106,422.33/year + per diem |
| Nevada State Senate | 21 | Democrat | 4 years | 3 terms (12 years) | No regular legislative session | $130/legislative day + per diem |
| Alaska State Senate | 20 | Split | 4 years | None | January 16, 2024 | $84,000/year + per diem |
| Delaware State Senate | 21 | Democrat | 2-4-4 year system | None | January 9, 2024 | $45,291/year |
| Florida State Senate | 40 | Republican | 2-4-4 year system | 2 terms (8 years) | January 9, 2024 | $29,697/year + per diem |
| Illinois State Senate | 59 | Democrat | 2-4-4 year system[3] | None | January 16, 2024 | $89,250/year + per diem |
| Kansas State Senate | 40 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 8, 2024 | $86.66/session day + per diem |
| Oklahoma State Senate | 48 | Republican | 4 years | 12 year cumulative total, in either or both chambers | February 5, 2024 | $47,500/year + per diem |
| Rhode Island State Senate | 38 | Democrat | 2 years | None | January 2, 2024 | $19,037/year |
| Vermont State Senate | 30 | Democrat | 2 years | None | January 3, 2024 | $843.32/week during session + per diem |
| South Carolina State Senate | 46 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 9, 2024 | $10,400/year + per diem |
| Virginia State Senate | 40 | Democrat | 4 years | None | January 10, 2024 | $18,000/year for senators. $17,640/year for delegates. + per diem |
| Iowa State Senate | 50 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 8, 2024 | $25,000/year + per diem |
| West Virginia State Senate | 34 | Republican | 4 years | None | January 10, 2024 | $20,000/year + per diem |
Footnotes
- ↑ According to the Chief Clerk of the California State Assembly, "Senators who were first elected to the State Legislature on or after the passage of Proposition 28 may serve 12 years in the Senate, or a combination of service in the Assembly and Senate as long as the combined terms do not exceed 12 years. Senators elected to the State Legislature prior to the passage of Proposition 28 are bound by two four-year terms in the State Senate and three two-year terms in the State Assembly established by the passage of Proposition 140, in 1990."
- ↑ California State Assembly Office of the Chief Clerk, "Elected Officials," accessed January 22, 2019
- ↑ Under the Illinois Constitution of 1970, senators are divided into three groups, each group having a two-year term at a different part of the decade between censuses, with the rest of the decade being taken up by two four-year terms. Depending on the election year, roughly ⅓, ⅔, or all of the senate seats may have terms ending.
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