Iowa House of Representatives

Infobox Legislature
name = Iowa House of Representatives
coa_pic =
session_room = Iowa House of Reps.jpg
house_type = Lower house
leader1_type = Speaker of the House
leader1 = Pat Murphy
party1 = D
election1 = January 8, 2007
leader2_type = Speaker pro Tempore
leader2 = Polly Bukta
party2 = D
election2 = January 8, 2007
leader4_type = Minority Leader
leader4 = Christopher Rants
party4 = R
election4 = January 8, 2007
members = 100
p_groups = Democratic Party
Republican Party
meeting_place = House Chamber, Iowa State Capitol, Des Moines, IA, US
website = http://www.legis.state.ia.us

The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly. There are 100 members of the House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state with populations of approximately 29,750 for each constituency. The House of Representatives meets at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines.

Unlike the upper house, the Iowa Senate, state House representatives serve two-year terms with the whole chamber up for re-election in even-numbered years. There are no term limits for the House.

Leadership of the House

The Speaker of the House presides over the House in the chief leadership position, controlling the flow of legislation and committee assignments. The Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus, followed by confirmation of the full House on passage of a floor vote. Other House leaders, such as the majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses according to each party's strength in the chamber.

The current Speaker is Pat Murphy of the 35th District (Dubuque). The Majority Leader is Kevin McCarthy of the 67th District (Des Moines). The Minority Leader is Christopher Rants of the 54th District (Sioux City).

Leaders

Current composition

Past notable members

* William S. Beardsley, Governor of Iowa from 1949 to 1954
* William W. Belknap, U.S. Army major general and U.S. Secretary of War from 1869 until impeached in 1876.
* Terry E. Branstad, Governor of Iowa from 1983 to 1999
* Robert D. Fulton, Governor of Iowa for 16 days in 1969
* Chuck Grassley, current U.S. Senator, 1981 to present
* Frank Merriam, Governor of California from 1934 to 1939
* William M. Stone, Civil War prisoner of war and Governor of Iowa from 1864 to 1868.
* James Wilson, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 1897 to 1913.

External links

* [http://www.legis.state.ia.us/ official government website]
* [http://www.vote-smart.org/official_state_legislator.php?type=office&state_id=IA&criteria=lower Project Vote Smart - State House of Iowa]
* [http://iowahouse.org/ Iowa House Democrats]
* [http://iowahouserepublicans.com/ Iowa House Republicans]