wfn.org | New faces in Congress won't alter United Methodist total

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

Nov. 11 , 1998	       Contact: Joretta Purdue*(202)546-8722*Washington
{661}

By Albert J. Menendez*

WASHINGTON (UMNS) - The United Methodist contingent in the 106th
Congress will be more Republican and more southern than at any time in
recent history.

There will be 59 United Methodists serving in the 106th Congress, which
begins in January, the same number recorded at the close of the 105th
Congress. These figures represent a slow but steady decline in United
Methodist congressional strength over the past four decades.

Of the newly elected members of Congress, the only United Methodist is
John Edwards, the Democratic senator from North Carolina, who defeated
Sen. Lauch Faircloth. In the House of Representatives, Heather Wilson, a
Republican from New Mexico's First District (Albuquerque and environs)
won a special election n June and was reelected in November.

There are 12 United Methodists in the Senate and 47 in the House.

The United Methodist congressional ranks have shifted slightly to the
become more Republican. Thirty-eight United Methodists are Republican,
and 21 are Democrats. About 64 percent of the United Methodist members
are Republicans, compared to 61 percent in the 105th Congress and 55
percent in the 104th Congress, even though the entire Congress is less
Republican today than in 1996 or 1994.

The 59 United Methodists are found in all regions of the country.  The
largest number, 10, come from Texas, followed by five from Georgia and
five from Ohio. No state elected four United Methodists, but several
states sent three: Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana and New Jersey.
Twenty-five states sent at least one United Methodist to Congress.  A
majority - 30 of the 59 - come from the South.

In terms of strength within state congressional delegations, United
Methodists are strongest in Kansas, where they comprise half the
members. About 40 percent of the Georgia delegation and one-third in
Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas belong to the United Methodist Church.

United Methodists remain in third place in over all membership, with
Roman Catholics in first place and Baptists second.  Presbyterians,
Episcopalians and Jews are in fourth, fifth and sixth places in the
rankings, as they were in the 105th Congress. Nondenominational
Protestants, Lutherans, Mormons and members of the United Church of
Christ fill out the top 10 religious groups represented in Congress.

United Methodists in Congress

The following is a list of all the members of the 106th Congress
(1999-2000) who list themselves as United Methodists:

Senate

Jeff Sessions
R
Alabama

Paul Coverdell
R
Georgia

Max Cleland
D
Georgia

Daniel Inouye
D
Hawaii

Larry Craig
R
Idaho

Richard Lugar
R
Indiana

Pat Roberts
R
Kansas

Sam Brownback
R
Kansas

Robert Torricelli
D
New Jersey

Jeff Bingaman
D
New Mexico

John Edwards
D
North Carolina

Craig Thomas
R
Wyoming

House

Robert Cramer
D
Alabama

Jim Kolbe
R
Arizona

Marion Berry
D
Arkansas

Jay Dickey
R
Arkansas

Robert Matsui
D
California

George Brown, Jr.
D
California

Allen Boyd
D
Florida

Bill Young
R
Florida

Mac Collins
R
Georgia

Bob Barr
R
Georgia

Charlie Norwood
R
Georgia

Thomas Ewing
R
Illinois

Steve Buyer
R
Indiana

Ed Pease
R
Indiana

Jerry Moran
R
Kansas

Edward Whitfield
R
Kentucky

Jim McCrery
R
Louisiana

John Cooksey
R
Louisiana

Richard Baker
R
Louisiana

Wayne Gilchrest
R
Maryland

Robert Ehrlich
R
Maryland

Debbie Stabenow
D
Michigan

Bennie Thompson
D
Mississippi

James Saxton
R
New Jersey

Bob Franks
R
New Jersey

Heather Wilson
R
New Mexico

Richard Burr
R
North Carolina

Paul Gillmor
R
Ohio

Rob Portman
R
Ohio

Ted Strickland
D
Ohio

David Hobson
R
Ohio

Steven LaTourette
R
Ohio

John Peterson
R
Pennsylvania

Bill Goodling
R
Pennsylvania

Bob Clement
D
Tennessee

Bart Gordon
D
Tennessee

Sam Johnson
R
Texas

Ralph Hall
D
Texas

Joe Barton
R
Texas

Pete Sessions
R
Texas

Lloyd Doggett
D
Texas

Chet Edwards
D
Texas

Kay Granger
R
Texas

Larry Combest
R
Texas

Solomon Ortiz
D
Texas

Gene Green
D
Texas

Rick Boucher
D
Virginia

# # #

* Menendez is the associate director of Americans for Religious Liberty
and has been the author of this analysis for the past several elections.