Understanding Representative Democracy Glossary

citizen: A member of a political society who owes allegiance to the government. Citizens are entitled to the rights and protections from their government.

Congress: The legislative branch of the Federal Government. Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

constituents: A group of residents represented by an elected official.

district: The geographical area in a state represented by a House member. Within a state, congressional districts are drawn so that each has an average of about 650,000 citizens.

Framer: People who attended the Constitutional Convention in 1787 as delegates or who were involved in the writing of the Bill of Rights.

interest group: A group of individuals who share some common goals and try to influence public policy to meet these goals. Also called “special interest group.”

legislator: An elected person who represents citizens in Congress and helps make laws.

public policy: A decision or action of government that addresses problems and issues.

representative democracy: In a representative democracy, citizens choose a small number of people to represent their interests and negotiate differences on their behalf.

U.S. Senator: An elected person who represents citizens of a particular state in the Senate.

U.S. Representative: An elected person who represents citizens of a particular district in the House of Representatives.