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78th Congress (1943–1945)

Congressional Profile

Total Membership:

435 Representatives
2 Delegates
2 Resident Commissioners

Party Divisions:^*

222 Democrats
209 Republicans
2 Progressives
1 American-Labor
1 Farmer-Labor

^*Party division totals are based on election day results.

Election Statistics, 1942 [PDF]

/tiles/non-collection/s/speaker_rayburn_seated_2005_016_043.xml Collection of the U.S. House of Representatives
About this object The longest serving Speaker in House History, Sam Rayburn of Texas presided over 10 Congresses as Speaker.

Congress Overview

The 1942 elections reduced Democratic majorities in Congress. To mobilize and coordinate the country’s wartime economy, the 78th Congress (1943–1945) recruited foreign farm laborers and seized vital manufacturing sectors. It repealed the Chinese Exclusion Acts in recognition of its wartime ally and expanded civil programs for its military: authorizing absentee voting; establishing the system of veterans’ preference for government jobs; and creating a network of benefits to assist in their readjustment to civilian life with the G.I. Bill of Rights.

Member Information

Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress, (1774–2005), Official Annotated Membership Roster by State with Vacancy and Special Election Information for the 78th Congress [PDF]
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Committee Information

Leadership & Officers

Speaker of the House:: Sam Rayburn (D–Texas)
Majority Leader:: John W. McCormack (D–Massachusetts)
Minority Leader:: Joseph W. Martin, Jr. (R–Massachusetts)
Democratic Whip:: Robert Ramspeck (D–Georgia)
Republican Whip:: Harry L. Englebright (R–California) ¹
Leslie C. Arends (R–Illinois)
Democratic Caucus Chairman:: Harry R. Sheppard (D–California)
Republican Conference Chairman:: Roy O. Woodruff (R–Michigan)
Clerk of the House:: South Trimble
Sergeant at Arms:: Kenneth Romney
Chaplain of the House:: James Shera Montgomery – Methodist
Doorkeeper:: Joseph J. Sinnot
Postmaster:: Finis E. Scott
Parliamentarian:: Lewis Deschler