Asian Pacific Americans in the United States Congress

Lorraine H. Tong
Analyst in American National Government

In the 112th Congress, 13 Asian Pacific Americans were elected to the United States Congress: 2 Senators, 9 Representatives, and 2 Delegates. A total of 43 Asian Pacific Americans have served in the House and Senate from 1903 to the present: 5 Senators (3 of whom have also served in the House), 21 Representatives (including the 3 who served in the Senate), 7 territorial Delegates, and 13 Resident Commissioners from the Philippine Islands. Resident Commissioners served from 1907-1946 while the Philippines was a U.S. territory and commonwealth (all were Philippine born). Asian Pacific Americans served in a total of 46 seats. Of the 30 Asian Pacific Americans who were not Resident Commissioners, 20 were Democrats (one was elected as an Independent and subsequently changed party affiliation to Democrat) and 10 were Republicans.

The ancestry of these Asian Pacific Americans has included Chinese, Chamorro, Filipino, Asian Indian, Japanese, Korean, Native Hawaiian, Samoan, South Asian, Thai, and Vietnamese. They have represented California, Hawaii, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon, Virginia, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

This report presents information on Senators, Representatives, and Delegates, including previous occupations and leadership positions (such as committee and subcommittee chairmanships), and the bipartisan and bicameral Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. It also provides a list of Members’ and Delegates’ party affiliations, length and dates of service, and committee assignments. Also included in the report is a map showing the total number of Asian Pacific Americans and the states or territories they represent in the 112th Congress. Four separate tables show (1) the Congress, the dates, and the name of the Members and Delegates who served in the House and Senate; (2) the state or territory, the number of Members and Delegates elected from the state or territory, and their names; (3) the Congress, years, total number of Members and Delegates, and the number of Members and Delegates in the House and Senate; and (4) the Resident Commissioners from the Philippine Islands, the Congresses in which they served, and the dates of their service.


Date of Report: May 19, 2011
Number of Pages: 27
Order Number: 97-398
Price: $29.95

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