11 fun facts and miscellanies about the 119th Congress

Nick Eskow and Paul V. Fontelo, CQ-Roll Call on Jan 3, 2025

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WASHINGTON — Identical siblings, more Moores, and a connection to the Olsen twins: The 119th Congress will feature several members — new and returning ― notable for their interesting backgrounds, careers or even shared last names.

Below is a selection of 11 factoids to serve as fresh material for your political trivia nights, based on CQ Roll Call’s member data and the congressional Biographical Directory.

Too young to have watched ‘ALF’

Congress is gaining no fewer than seven members born in the 1990s ― all House members.

They include Republicans Abe Hamadeh of Arizona, Addison McDowell of North Carolina, Rob Bresnahan Jr. of Pennsylvania and Brandon Gill of Texas; and Democrats Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, Sarah McBride of Delaware and Pablo José Hernández Rivera, Puerto Rico’s nonvoting resident commissioner.

They join Florida Democratic Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost, who, with a 1997 birthdate, will remain the youngest member of Congress.

Three Tackled Trump Trial, Topped Tallies

The 119th Congress will feature several notable Democratic figures from Donald Trump’s first impeachment. Among them is recently sworn-in California Sen. Adam B. Schiff, who served as lead manager at the impeachment trial.

Incoming Rep. Eugene Vindman of Virginia played a role at the start of the impeachment inquiry when he and his twin brother, Alexander, both National Security Council officials, shared concerns over Trump’s phone call with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Incoming New Hampshire Rep. Maggie Goodlander was a counsel on the House Judiciary Committee during the inquiry. Incumbent New York Rep. Dan Goldman served as Democrats’ lead counsel.

Doctors, represent thyself

The class of 2024 includes three House lawmakers with degrees in both medicine and law, a distinction shared by none of their non-freshman colleagues. New Jersey Democrat Herb Conaway, Utah Republican Mike Kennedy and Missouri Republican Bob Onder have all earned M.D. and J.D. degrees.

Virginians born abroad

What are the odds that two House Democrats from Virginia were born in countries that no longer exist? Vindman was born in Kyiv, which was part of the Soviet Union at the time. His family fled to the U.S. when he was a child.

Six-term Rep. Donald S. Beyer Jr. was born in the Free Territory of Trieste, where his father was a U.S. Army officer at the time. The short-lived territory was established by the United Nations in the years following World War II and covered parts of modern-day Italy, Slovenia and Croatia.

The Seventh SEAL

Senate newcomer Tim Sheehy of Montana and incoming House freshman John McGuire of Virginia bring the number of retired Navy SEALs in Congress to seven. They join Reps. Ryan Zinke of Montana, Eli Crane of Arizona, Daniel Crenshaw and Morgan Luttrell, both of Texas and Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin. All are Republicans.

Birthday Bash

Look for cakes on the Hill shortly before Halloween. Six lawmakers share a birthday on Oct. 24: in the House, California Republican Vince Fong and Democrats Kweisi Mfume of Maryland, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and Brad Sherman of California; plus Oregon Democrat Jeff Merkley and South Dakota Republican Mike Rounds in the Senate.

The Moore the merrier

Republicans Tim Moore of North Carolina and Riley Moore of West Virginia have joined the House, along with Texas Democrat Julie Elizabeth Johnson. Their last names, Moore and Johnson, are now tied with Scott and Smith as the most common lawmaker last names in the 119th Congress, at five each.

Don’t call it a comeback

Three members of the class of 2024 are returning for their second stints in the House.

California Democrat Gil Cisneros was first elected to Congress in 2018 but lost reelection two years later to Republican Young Kim. He won a nearby district last fall and succeeds retiring Democratic Rep. Grace F. Napolitano.

Indiana Republican Marlin Stutzman returns to his 3rd District seat after vacating it for an unsuccessful Senate bid in 2016. He takes over for fellow Republican Jim Banks, who was elected to the Senate.

Rep.-elect Cleo Fields is returning after the longest absence among the three returning congressmen. The Louisiana Democrat retired from the House in 1997 after his seat was dismantled in mid-decade redistricting. His election to a new Black-majority district brings him back to Congress after a 28-year hiatus.

It’s a living

Not all House member resumes are the same. New York Democrat Laura Gillen worked as a scuba instructor in Thailand prior to beginning a law career. Washington Republican Michael Baumgartner was once an economic policy adviser to Dubai Crown Prince Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, now the ruler of the wealthy emirate.

California Democrat Laura Friedman was a Hollywood film executive. Notable credits include her work as co-producer on “It Takes Two,” a 1995 film featuring child stars Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree

Several House freshmen come from families with deep political ties, including Riley Moore, the nephew of West Virginia Republican Sen. Shelley Moore Capito. His grandfather was former Gov. Arch A. Moore Jr.

Michigan Republican Tom Barrett follows in the footsteps of his great-grandfather, Democrat Louis C. Rabaut, who was first elected to the House in 1934 and died in office in 1961. Barrett was able to claim one of Rabaut’s former offices as his own during the room lottery in November.

Alaska Republican Nick Begich comes to the House more than five decades after his grandfather, also named Nicholas Begich, held the same at-large seat. The elder Begich was running for a second term when his plane went missing en route from Anchorage to Juneau. He was declared dead in absentia.

Hernández Rivera, Puerto Rico’s new resident commissioner, has deep roots in the island’s Popular Democratic Party. His grandfather, Rafael Hernández Colón, was a three-term governor.

Impress your friends with miscellany

Some House freshmen stand out in other ways.

North Carolina Republican Brad Knott is a quadruplet.

Cisneros, the returning California Democrat, and his wife won a $266 million lottery jackpot in 2010.

Another California Democrat, George Whitesides, may be the first to book a commercial flight through the stratosphere — the former Virgin Galactic CEO listed two tickets “for rocket-powered spaceflight” in a 2023 financial disclosure.