This chart depicts incumbency and turnover rates in the U.S. Congress between 1939 and 2003 by comparing the percentage of incumbents and freshman. The data presented shows the number of freshman rarely surpassing twenty percent, and generally staying closer to the low teens. The chart notes two exceptional breaks in the data: the aftermath of the Watergate scandal (1973-1974) and the House banking scandal (1992-1993).
Back