This page provides links to Congressional voting scorecards issued by political and advocacy groups from across the political spectrum.
Congressional voting scorecards rate US Senators and Representatives on their voting records, measured in terms related to the political views of the group issuing the scorecard. Most scorecards issue a composite numerical score, usually from 0 (worst) to 100 (best); some also provide details on how individual members of Congress voted on each key vote.
Each group will chose a different set of votes to consider. Groups concerned with a narrower set of issues (say, the environment) will likely use a narrower set of votes than a group with a broad political agenda (like the liberal Americans for Democratic Action or the American Conservative Union). Note that because of the sheer number of Congressional votes, scorecards will reflect a subset of "key" votes. Users of scorecards should also note other differences between scorecards, for example in the treatment of missed votes.
Voter's guides attempt to educate voters on the issue positions of candidates in a particular race. This page focuses on Congressional score cards, which looks at past voting records, not voter's guide, which focus on the positions of candidates (of whom at most one can be an incumbent). Scorecards may be useful for evaluating incumbents in races, or nonincumbents who have previously served in Congress in another seat.
Sometimes scorecards make reference to numerical designnations of sessions of Congress rather than calendar years (e.g., "the 108th Congress" or "the 107th Congress, first session"). The Library of Congress has a good discussion of Congressional sessions. The following table lists recent Congresses:
| Congress | 1st Session | 2nd Session |
|---|---|---|
| 108th | 2003 | 2004 |
| 107th | 2001 | 2002 |
| 106th | 1999 | 2000 |
| 105th | 1997 | 1998 |
These groups are the same ones used in National Journal's Almanac of American Politics. The description of each group was chosen by TruthAndPolitics.org and is intended to be as neutral and unbiased as possible.
| Group | Description | Current scorecard |
Previous scorecards |
Intro page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AFSCME | Labor | 2003 (i) | 1999--2002 (pdfs) | intro |
| American Civil Liberties Union | Civil liberties | 2003 (i) | 1997--2002 | intro |
| American Conservative Union | Conservative | 2000--2003 (i) | 1971--1999 | intro |
| Americans for Democratic Action | Liberal | 2003 |
1985--2002, 1948--1984 (pdfs) |
intro |
| Chamber of Commerce of the United States | Business | 2003 (i) | 2001--2003 | intro |
| Christian Coalition | Conservative Christian |
2002 (h) 2001 (s) |
na | intro |
| Concord Coalition | Federal fiscal responsibility |
2001--2002 | 1995--2000 | intro |
| Information Technology Industry Council | High-tech business |
2001--2002 2001--2002 (pdf) |
na | na |
| League of Conservation Voters | Environment | 2003 (i) 2003 (pdf) |
1997--2002 (i) 1979--2002 (pdfs) |
intro |
| National Tax-Limitation Committee | Limiting taxes and government |
2001--2002 | 1999--2000 | intro |
| National Taxpayers Union | Limiting taxes and government |
1992--2002 (i) | na | intro |
Notes:
Project Vote Smart has collected scores from many advocacy organizations, covered a wide range of issues. These can be found using the link "Interest Group Ratings" (on the left panel, under "Basic Categories"). You must first select a name (candidate or official) or your locality (ZIP+4 or state) and then navigate appropriately. Vote Smart also has Congressional voting records (under "Voting Records") that list key votes by year and issue category.
Again, the description of each group was chosen by TruthAndPolitics.org and is intended to be as neutral and unbiased as possible.
| Group | Description | Current scorecard |
Previous scorecards |
Intro page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AFL-CIO | Labor | 2003 (h,pdf) 2003(s, pdf) |
1996--2003 | intro |
| AARP | Senior citizens | 2003 (i) | na | na |
| National Retail Federation | Business (retailers) | 2003 (i) | 1999--2002 (pdfs) | intro |
| National Right to Life Committee | Pro-life | 2003--2004 (i) | 1997--2004 (i) | na |
| People for the American Way | Liberal | 2001--2003 (i) | 2001--2002 (pdf) | na |
| Planned Parenthood Action Fund | Pro-choice | 1995--2003 (i) | 1995--2003 (i) | na |
| Public Citizen | Consumers | 2003--2004 (i) | 2001--2004 (i) | na |
| Public Interest Research Groups | Public interest | 2003 | 1996--2002 | intro |
| SEIU | Labor | 2002--2004 (i) 2003--2004 |
na | intro |
| Taxpayers for Common Sense | Federal fiscal responsibility | 2001 | 1997--2000 | intro |
Notes:
Page last updated on 2004 March 24