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Lame duck session
Two months when the old Congress keeps voting after the voters have replaced it.
Elections are in early November. The new Congress is sworn in on January 3, as the 20th Amendment sets. In between, the outgoing Congress can still meet and vote.
All steps in text
- Elections are in early November. The new Congress is sworn in on January 3, as the 20th Amendment sets. In between, the outgoing Congress can still meet and vote.
- Members who lost or did not run again, and a president in the final months of a term. They still hold full powers.
- Funding bills, the defense authorization, nominations, and sometimes major laws that were stuck before the election.
- The members voting no longer face these voters. Supporters say it clears the decks; critics say it weakens accountability.
- The gap used to last until March. The 20th Amendment shortened it so a defeated Congress sits for weeks, not months.