Congressional Black Caucus

The Congressional Black Caucus is an organization representing African American members of the Congress of the United States. Its chair in the 109th Congress is Representative Mel Watt of North Carolina.

Membership

The Caucus is officially non-partisan, but in practice it has been almost exclusively composed of Democrats, and tends to function as a lobbying group with the wider Congressional Democratic Party. Only three black Republicans have been elected to Congress since the Caucus was founded: Senator Edward W. Brooke of Massachusetts and Representatives Gary Franks of Connecticut and J.C. Watts, Jr. of Oklahoma, who refused to join.

Related Topics:
Democrats - Republicans - Edward W. Brooke - Massachusetts - Gary Franks - Connecticut - J.C. Watts, Jr. - Oklahoma

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The Caucus has grown steadily as more African American members have been elected. In 1969 the Caucus had nine members. As of 2005 it had 43 members, including two who are non-voting members of the House, representing the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Currently, Illinois Senator Barack Obama is the only African-American member of the U.S. Senate.

Related Topics:
1969 - 2005 - District of Columbia - U.S. Virgin Islands - Illinois - Barack Obama - U.S. Senate

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