What is known as Parliament in most democracies is called TheUnited States Congress in America.
It is the supreme legislative branch (gathering of members) with the authority to make laws for the country.
The US Congress is bicameral i.e. consisting of two houses/chambers.
The first house is the House of Representatives (Lower House); it has 435 members.
The second house is The Senate (Upper House); it has 100 members.
Members of both the houses are elected through ballot by the citizens of the country.
While The Senate has 2 members from each of 50 states, the number of House of Representatives for each state is based on the population of the states.
The population of each state is divided by 710,767 to arrive at the number of electoral divisions (called congressional districts); and each electoral division will have one House of Representatives.
For e.g. California has the highest population (37.25 Million as per Census 2010) and therefore 53 electoral divisions (37.25 million divided by 710,767 = 52.4), and, therefore 53 House of Representatives.
If a state has a population less than 710,767, it will still have 1 House of Representatives.
Like everywhere else, the Upper House is meant to review and approve legislation passed by the Lower House.
Each member of the House of Representatives serves a two-year term and is considered for re-election every even-numbered year.
There is no limit to the number of terms an individual can serve.
