| A | B |
|---|
| term | two year period of time during which congress meets |
| session | period of time during which congress assembles and conducts business |
| adjourn | suspend, as in a session of congress |
| special session | an extrodinary session of legislative body called to deal with an emergency situation |
| apportion | distribute, as in seats in a legislative body |
| reapportion | redistribute, as in seats in a legislative body |
| off-year election | congressional election that occurs between presidential election years |
| single-member district | electoral district from which one person is chosen by the voters for each elected office |
| at-large | election an office holds by the voters of an entire governmental unit rahter than by the voters of a district or subdivision |
| gerrymander | the drawing of electoral district lines to the advantage of a party or group |
| proroque | adjourn, as in a legislative session |
| continuous body | governing unit whose seats are never all up for election at the same time |
| constituency | the people and interests that an elected official represents |
| trustee | lawmaker who votes based on his or her conscience and judgement, not the views of his or her constituents |
| partisan | lawmaker who owes his/her first allegiance tohis/her political party and votes according to the party line |
| politico | lawmaker who attempts to balance the basic elements of the trustee, delegate, and partisan roles |
| oversight function | review by legislative committees of the policies and programs of the executive branch |
| franking privilige | benefit allowing members of congress to mail letters and other materials postage free |
