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1953–1955 U.S. Congress From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 83rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 1953, until January 3, 1955, during the last two weeks of the Truman administration, with the remainder spanning the first two years of Dwight Eisenhower's presidency. It was composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The apportionment of seats in the House was based on the 1950 U.S. census.
| 83rd United States Congress | |
|---|---|
82nd ← → 84th | |
United States Capitol (1956) | |
January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1955 | |
| Members | 96 senators 435 representatives 3 non-voting delegates |
| Senate majority | Republican (with tie-breaking VP, then with tie-breaking VP & caucus) |
| Senate President | Alben W. Barkley (D)[a] (until January 20, 1953) Richard Nixon (R) (from January 20, 1953) |
| House majority | Republican |
| House Speaker | Joseph W. Martin Jr. (R) |
| Sessions | |
| 1st: January 3, 1953 – August 3, 1953 2nd: January 6, 1954 – December 2, 1954 | |
The Republicans gained the majority in both chambers, winning back full control of Congress for the first time since the 80th Congress in 1947, and with Dwight Eisenhower being sworn in as president on January 20, 1953, this gave the Republicans an overall federal government trifecta for the first time since the 71st Congress in 1929, and the last time until they briefly did so during the 107th Congress in 2001.
Until the last week of the first session of Congress, Republicans had a 48-47-1 tied-plurality in the Senate which Republican Vice President Richard Nixon broke in the GOP’s favor. At the start of the second session, to account for whenever the Senate became tied 47-47-1 or when the Democrats held the plurality the Republican-turned-Independent, Wayne Morse, claimed allegiance with the GOP which gave them a de facto tie-breaking majority, allowing continuity in GOP control of the Senate and the overall trifecta of government. Thus Robert A. Taft and William Knowland remained Senate Majority Leader, Lyndon B. Johnson remained Senate Minority Leader, and the GOP remained continuously in control of the Senate committees. Wayne Morse would begin caucusing with Democrats at the start of the next Congress in 1955 to give them Senate control.
| Affiliation | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) |
Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Independent | Republican | Vacant | ||
| End of previous Congress | 47 | — | 48 | 95 | 1 |
| Begin | 47 | 1 | 48 | 96 | — |
| June 26, 1953[b] | 46 | 95 | 1 | ||
| July 10, 1953[b] | 47 | 96 | — | ||
| July 24, 1953[c] | 47 | 95 | 1 | ||
| July 31, 1953[d] | 47 | 46 | 94 | 2 | |
| August 14, 1953[c] | 47 | 47 | 95 | 1 | |
| November 10, 1953[d] | 48 | 96 | — | ||
| January 6, 1954[e] | 48 | 1[e] | 47 | 96 | — |
| April 12, 1954[f] | 48 | 1 | 46 | 95 | 1 |
| April 16, 1954[f] | 48 | 1[e] | 47 | 96 | — |
| May 12, 1954[g] | 47 | 95 | 1 | ||
| June 5, 1954[g] | 48 | 96 | — | ||
| June 19, 1954[h] | 47 | 95 | 1 | ||
| June 24, 1954[h] | 48 | 96 | — | ||
| July 1, 1954[i] | 47 | 95 | 1 | ||
| July 3, 1954[i] | 48 | 96 | — | ||
| September 1, 1954[j] | 46 | 95 | 1 | ||
| September 6, 1954[j] | 47 | 96 | — | ||
| September 28, 1954[k] | 46 | 95 | 1 | ||
| September 6, 1954[k] | 49 | 96 | — | ||
| November 2, 1954[h] | 47 | 48 | |||
| November 2, 1954[k] | 48 | 47 | |||
| December 15, 1954[d] | 47 | 48 | |||
| December 23, 1954[j] | 46 | 95 | 1 | ||
| December 24, 1954[j] | 47 | 96 | — | ||
| December 31, 1954[f] | 47 | 95 | 1 | ||
| January 1, 1955[f] | 48 | 96 | — | ||
| Final voting share | 49% | 1% | 50% | ||
| Beginning of the next Congress | 48 | 1 | 47 | 96 | — |
| Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) |
Total | Vacant | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Independent | Republican | |||
| End of previous Congress | 228 | 1 | 198 | 427 | 8 |
| Begin | 211 | 1 | 221 | 433 | 2 |
| End | 212 | 213 | 426 | 9 | |
| Beginning of next Congress | 231 | 0 | 203 | 434 | 1 |
Senators are popularly elected statewide every six years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Within each state, senators are listed in order of seniority. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election, In this Congress, Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, facing re-election in 1954; Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1956; and Class 1 meant their term began in this Congress, facing re-election in 1958.
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of this Congress.
| State (class) |
Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's formal installation[m] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina (2) |
Willis Smith (D) | Died June 26, 1953. Successor appointed July 10, 1953. |
Alton Lennon (D) | July 10, 1953 |
| New Hampshire (3) |
Charles W. Tobey (R) | Died July 24, 1953. Successor appointed August 14, 1953. |
Robert W. Upton (R) | August 14, 1953 |
| Ohio (3) |
Robert A. Taft (R) | Died July 31, 1953. Successor appointed November 10, 1953. |
Thomas A. Burke (D) | November 10, 1953 |
| Nebraska (2) |
Dwight Griswold (R) | Died April 12, 1954. Successor appointed April 16, 1954. |
Eva Bowring (R) | April 16, 1954 |
| North Carolina (3) |
Clyde R. Hoey (D) | Died May 12, 1954. Successor appointed May 12, 1954 and then elected November 2, 1954. |
Sam Ervin (D) | June 5, 1954 |
| Wyoming (2) |
Lester C. Hunt (D) | Died June 19, 1954. Successor appointed June 24, 1954. |
Edward D. Crippa (R) | June 24, 1954 |
| Nebraska (1) |
Hugh A. Butler (R) | Died July 1, 1954. Successor appointed July 3, 1954. |
Samuel W. Reynolds (R) | July 3, 1954 |
| South Carolina (2) |
Burnet R. Maybank (D) | Died September 1, 1954. Successor appointed September 6, 1954. |
Charles E. Daniel (D) | September 6, 1954 |
| Nevada (3) |
Pat McCarran (D) | Died September 28, 1954. Successor appointed October 1, 1954. |
Ernest S. Brown (R) | October 1, 1954 |
| Nebraska (1) |
Samuel W. Reynolds (R) | Did not run in the special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
Roman Hruska (R) | November 8, 1954 |
| Nebraska (2) |
Eva Bowring (R) | Did not run in the special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
Hazel Abel (R) | November 8, 1954 |
| New Hampshire (3) |
Robert W. Upton (R) | Lost special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
Norris Cotton (R) | November 8, 1954 |
| North Carolina (2) |
Alton Lennon (D) | Lost special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
W. Kerr Scott (D) | November 29, 1954 |
| Wyoming (2) |
Edward D. Crippa (R) | Did not run in the special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
Joseph C. O'Mahoney (D) | November 29, 1954 |
| Nevada (3) |
Ernest S. Brown (R) | Lost special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
Alan Bible (D) | December 2, 1954 |
| Ohio (3) |
Thomas A. Burke (D) | Lost special election to fill seat. Successor elected November 2, 1954. |
George H. Bender (R) | December 16, 1954 |
| South Carolina (2) |
Charles E. Daniel (D) | Resigned December 23, 1954. Successor appointed December 24, 1954. |
Strom Thurmond (D) | December 24, 1954 |
| Nebraska (2) |
Hazel Abel (R) | Resigned December 31, 1954. Successor was appointed January 1, 1955. |
Carl Curtis (R) | January 1, 1955 |
| District | Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date of successor's formal installation[m] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia 2nd | Vacant | Rep. Edward E. Cox died during previous congress | J. L. Pilcher (D) | February 4, 1953 |
| Illinois 7th | Vacant | Rep. Adolph J. Sabath died during previous congress | James Bowler (D) | July 7, 1953 |
| Virginia 5th | Thomas B. Stanley (D) | Resigned February 3, 1953, to run for Governor of Virginia | William M. Tuck (D) | April 14, 1953 |
| South Carolina 4th | Joseph R. Bryson (D) | Died March 10, 1953 | Robert T. Ashmore (D) | June 2, 1953 |
| Kentucky 2nd | Garrett Withers (D) | Died April 30, 1953 | William Natcher (D) | August 1, 1953 |
| Wisconsin 9th | Merlin Hull (R) | Died May 17, 1953 | Lester Johnson (D) | October 13, 1953 |
| California 24th | Norris Poulson (R) | Resigned June 11, 1953, after being elected Mayor of Los Angeles | Glenard P. Lipscomb (R) | November 10, 1953 |
| New Jersey 6th | Clifford P. Case (R) | Resigned August 16, 1953 | Harrison A. Williams (D) | November 3, 1953 |
| Hawaii Territory at-large | Joseph Rider Farrington (R) | Died June 19, 1954 | Mary Elizabeth Pruett Farrington (R) | August 4, 1954 |
| New York 8th | Louis B. Heller (D) | Resigned July 21, 1954, after being appointed judge of the Court of Special Sessions of New York City | Vacant | Not filled this term |
| Georgia 4th | Albert Sidney Camp (D) | Died July 24, 1954 | John Flynt (D) | November 2, 1954 |
| Michigan 3rd | Paul W. Shafer (R) | Died August 17, 1954 | Vacant | Not filled this term |
| Ohio 15th | Robert T. Secrest (D) | Resigned September 26, 1954 | ||
| New Hampshire 2nd | Norris Cotton (R) | Resigned November 7, 1954, after being elected to the U.S. Senate | ||
| Nebraska 2nd | Roman Hruska (R) | Resigned November 8, 1954, after being elected to the U.S. Senate | ||
| Florida 6th | Dwight L. Rogers (D) | Died December 1, 1954 | ||
| Ohio 15th | George H. Bender (R) | Resigned December 15, 1954, after being elected to the U.S. Senate | ||
| Nebraska 1st | Carl Curtis (R) | Resigned December 31, 1954, after being elected to the U.S. Senate | ||
| New York 21st | Jacob Javits (R) | Resigned December 31, 1954, after being elected New York attorney General |
Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.
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