Incoming senators are nearly 15 years younger than departing ones, on average. But the chamber’s overall age isn’t shifting much.
Nov. 7, 2026Updated 3:17 p.m. ET
When the new Senate convenes in January, it will welcome some (relatively) young new legislators. A few are even millennials, including James Talarico of Texas, 37, and Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan, 42, two Democrats who may have energized young voters to turn out.
But their effect on the average age of the Senate — which has crept up over the last few decades — will be small. The senators of the 120th Congress will be less than a year younger, on average, than the Senate’s current members were at the start of the 119th Congress two years ago. That’s because so many sitting senators are old, and getting older.
These numbers assume that Mary Peltola and Scott Colom will win their races in Alaska and Mississippi; they were both ahead in the vote count Saturday. (If both lose, the Senate’s average age will land at 63.6.)
Down from 65.
Isn’t that when corporations have decided that you are no longer useful and you are forced to retire. Finding a new job at that age is laughable.
And yet, people seem to think 80 is a proper age for running a country and deciding laws.
I still think Congress should have a mandatory age limit at whatever they set Social Security at.
They chose when that age should be, they need to adhere to it. Not sure what the mechanism would be to prevent them from raising that just to let them stay longer though, gotta think of some sort of negative that would balance it out.
While we’re at it, they get the same Medicare coverage as anyone else, not the super special cover everything plan they do now. Again, they get what they determined is good enough for everyone else.
yeah the social sevurity thing seems like it would create some incentives we don’t want.
do like the medicare thing.
You don’t want an effective retirement age of …checks Wikipedia …95 (Chuck grassleys age at the end of his term in 2028)?
Huh, I guess you must be lazy. These silly forgotten generation kids just don’t know how to work anymore. /s
its true. I work almost as little as a congressman. why do you think I have so much time for posting?
So you want to give them incentive to raise the retirement age for two reasons?
Was it 65 just before the midterms or 65 when the current congress got elected?
Because it’s going to be 65 by the next election cycle if it’s 63 right now. That would mean no real progress if the 65 was just before midterms.
With no more elected for 2 years…
a few will die. inevitable at that age. special elections/appointments will happen.
Yes, but the average age dropping by 2 years where most are staying for 4 is not a real age drop.
true. I’m just pointing out that death has become synonymous with hope. a very cool state of affairs I like a lot.