The US Constitution specifies staggered 6-year terms for Senators, and there are special provisions for getting a new state into a situation that makes that pattern continue automatically:
- around the time of the first federal elections, in 1788, each state appointed its two Senators for, respectively,
- --- a two-year and a four-year term,
- --- a four-year and a six-year term, or
- --- a two-year and a six-year term;
- upon the expiration of a Senator's term of any length, someone starts a new six-year term as Senator (based on appointment in most states, until a Constitutional Amendment required direct Popular Election of Senators);
- when a new state is admitted to the Union, its two Senators have terms that correspond to those of two different classes, among the three classes defined below;
- which two classes is determined by a scheme that keeps the three classes as close to the same size as possible, i.e., that avoids any class differing by more than one from the minimum-sized class.
(This means at least one of a new state's first pair of Senators has a term of less than six years, and one term is either two or four years shorter than the other.)
Class I consists of
- the 33 current Senators whose seats are scheduled for re-election in November 2006, and whose terms end in January 2007;
- and the earlier Senators with terms ending in 2001, 1995, 1989, 1983, 1977, 1971, 1965, 1959, and back to 1791; and
- some Senators in the class are successors to Senators who started two-year terms in 1789.
Class II consists of
- the 33 current Senators whose seats are scheduled for re-election in November 2008, and whose terms end in January 2009;
- and earlier Senators with terms that ended in 2003, 1997, 1991, 1991, 1985, 1979, 1973, 1967, 1961, and back to 1793; and
- some Senators in the class are successors to Senators who started four-year terms in 1789.
Class III consists of
- the 34 current Senators whose seats are scheduled for re-election in November 2010, and whose terms end in January 2011;
- and earlier Senators with terms that ended in 2005, 1999, 1993, 1987, 1981, 1975, 1969, 1963, and back to 1795; and
- some Senators in the class are successors to Senators who started six-year terms in 1789.
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