The House of Representatives is considered (though unofficially) the lower house of the U.S. Congress. States are represented in proportion to population, yet even the smallest state has at least one deputy in the House. The House of Representatives has a total of 435 seats, and its members are called congressmen.
The main task of the House of Representatives is to pass federal bills that, after being approved by the Senate and signed by the President, become U.S. laws.
Congressmen are elected for two-year terms, and elections are held every even-numbered year. To be a candidate for the House of Representatives, one must be at least twenty-five years old, have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and live in the state from which the candidate is elected to Congress.
The House of Representatives has the right to expel elected deputies from its ranks; to do so, at least two-thirds of the congressmen must vote for expulsion.
To direct the work of the House of Representatives, congressmen elect a speaker (chair). Traditionally, he is the leader of the party which has a majority of seats in the House. The Speaker of the House of Representatives is the third person in the “line of succession” to the presidency, that is, he becomes the President of the United States if the incumbent President and Vice President are unable to serve.
The House of Representatives meets in the south wing of the U.S. Capitol.
Any congressman of the House can be removed from office if two-thirds of all its members vote for it. Congressmen are re-elected regularly, every two years. They must meet a number of formal requirements; in particular, they must be 25 years old, be a citizen of the country, and live in their home state for at least 7 years.
The first task of the House of Representatives is to generate key legislation for the country. They become so after being signed by the president and the other house of Congress.