With Feinstein Set to Retire, These Are the Oldest Lawmakers in Congress

Tatyana Monnay
·2 min read
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(Bloomberg) -- Dianne Feinstein, the oldest member of the US Senate at age 89, isn’t running for reelection in 2024, but there are many octogenarians who will still grace the halls of Congress after she leaves.

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There are 21 members of the Silent Generation — born between 1928 and 1945 — in the House and eight in the Senate, according to the Pew Research Center. Baby Boomers, born after World War II, dominate both chambers, making up two-thirds of the Senate and nearly 45% of the House.

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The House is trending younger — with an average age of 57.9 years, down from 58.9 years in the two-year Congress that adjourned last month, according to Pew. That’s thanks in part to 26-year-old Democrat Maxwell Frost, the first member of Gen Z elected to Congress.

But the Senate continues to age, with a median age this year of 65.3 years, up from 64.8 in the 117th Congress, 63.6 in the 116th and 62.4 in the 115th.

A majority of Americans, spanning across political affiliations, favor installing age maximum limits on elected officials, according to an August CBS News poll. In the same poll, 40% said the maximum age for elected officials should be 70 years old.

More than a dozen US lawmakers are older than President Joe Biden, 80, the oldest US president ever elected. Here are the lawmakers who were born before Biden’s birth on Nov. 20, 1942.

  • Senator Dianne Feinstein, California Democrat, born in 1933

  • Senator Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican, born in 1933

  • Representative Grace Napolitano, California Democrat, born in 1936

  • Representative Bill Pascrell, New Jersey Democrat, born in 1937

  • Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, District of Columbia Democrat, born in 1937

  • Representative Hal Rogers, Kentucky Republican, born in 1937

  • Representative Maxine Waters, California Democrat, born in 1938

  • Representative Steny Hoyer, Maryland Democrat, born in 1939

  • Representative Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, born in 1940

  • Representative Jim Clyburn, South Carolina Democrat, born in 1940

  • Senator Bernie Sanders, Vermont Independent, born in 1941

  • Representative Danny Davis, Illinois Democrat, born in 1941

  • Representative John Carter, Texas Republican, born in 1941

  • Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell, Kentucky Republican, born in February 1942.

  • Representative Frederica Wilson, Florida Democrat, born on Nov. 5, 1942.

Representative Anna Eshoo, a California Democrat who turned 80 in December, missed this list by less than a month. Republican House Appropriations Chair Kay Granger of Texas celebrated her 80th birthday in January.

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