Who Is One of Your State's U.S. Senators Now? Civics Question 23

This one has no single right answer. It depends on the state you live in, and it changes after elections.

Question 23 asks you to name one of your state’s current U.S. senators. Your state has two, and naming either one is correct. Residents of the District of Columbia and residents of U.S. territories answer that they have no U.S. senators, and that answer is marked correct.

How to Find Your Two Senators

Every state has exactly two U.S. senators, and they represent the whole state rather than one city or district.

The official list lives at senate.gov, which lets you look up senators by state. Choose the state where you live now, not a state you used to live in, and write down both names.

Then check the list again in the week before your interview. Senate seats change hands in elections, and a seat can also change between elections when a senator leaves office and the state fills the seat. The name you learned months ago may not be the name that is correct on your test day.

If You Live in D.C. or a Territory

The District of Columbia has no U.S. senators. Neither do Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, or the Northern Mariana Islands. That is not a gap in your studying. It is the fact the question is testing.

If you live in one of those places, the correct answer is that you have no U.S. senators. Say it plainly and do not try to name someone.

How to Remember a Name That Changes

For this question, learn a habit instead of a fact. Look the answer up, say it out loud, and check it again close to your interview date.

Practice both names even though you only need one. If the first name leaves you in the interview room, the second one is still a correct answer, and you will not have to stand there hunting for the one you rehearsed.

Say the full name, first and last. Pronunciation only has to be understandable, and you are never asked to spell it.

A Trap in the Word “U.S.”

Many states also have state senators who serve in the state capitol. Those are not the answer. The question asks for a U.S. senator, who serves in Washington, D.C.

Do not answer with your member of the House of Representatives either. That person serves a district inside your state, and this question asks about the Senate.

What to Say on Test Day

Say one senator’s full name, then stop. If you live in D.C. or a territory, say “we have no U.S. senators.”

One name is enough. Giving both is not wrong, and it doubles the chance of stumbling over one.