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Baby of the House is the unofficial title given to the youngest member of a Lower house or Upper house.
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Australia
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In Australia the term is rarely used, as most MPs and Senators are elected usually only in their thirties and later but some prominent MPs have been elected rather early in life including Prime Ministers Malcolm Fraser and Paul Keating who were both elected at age 25 in 1955 and 1969 respectively. The current baby of the house is the 29 year old Amanda Rishworth (Labor, Kingston). The current baby of the senate is the 26 year old Sarah Hanson-Young (South Australia).
Canada
The youngest-ever elected member of the Canadian House of Commons is Nicolas Dufour as a result of the 2008 federal election. Born in June 1987, Dufour was 21 on election day (14 October 2008). In the past, MPs such as Pierre Poilievre, Andrew Scheer and Lorne Nystrom have also held the distinction.
Republic of Ireland
In the Republic of Ireland the term is rarely used, as most TDs and are elected usually only in their thirties and later. The current baby of the Dáil is the 28 year-old Fine Gael deputy Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South-East). The youngest TD of all time was William J. Murphy, elected aged 21 years 29 days; the youngest female TD was Mary Coughlan, 21 years 265 days.
List of Babies of the Dáil
United Kingdom
Becoming the Baby of the House is regarded as something of an achievement, and for example, Jeffrey Archer incorrectly claimed to have been the youngest MP at the time of his election. However, some MPs who have held the position for a considerable period — Matthew Taylor was the Baby of the House for over ten years — have found it somewhat embarrassing, as it may suggest that they have a lack of experience, although a perusal of the list shows that many babies in fact went on to enjoy long, significant and distinguished parliamentary careers. From August 1999 to September 2001, all three of the leaders of the main political parties had been the youngest MPs in the party when they began their political career (William Hague, Tony Blair, Charles Kennedy).
Of those whose age can be verified, the youngest MP since the Reform Act 18321 was Esmond Harmsworth, elected on 15 November 1919 from the Isle of Thanet aged 21 years 170 days. The youngest female MP was Bernadette Devlin, elected on 17 April 1969 from Mid Ulster aged 21 years 359 days.
In more recent times, the oldest Baby at first election is Sarah Teather, elected in 2003 aged 29 years 109 days.
List of Babies of the House of Commons
- ^ Prior to 1832 minors could be elected; precise information on those MPs is often unclear.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae by-election
- ^ Joseph Aloysius Sweeney did not take his seat; the youngest MP actually sitting in the House of Commons was Oswald Mosley (Conservative, aged 22)
- ^ a b Became the youngest MP for a second time, on the death of the previous youngest MP
- ^ Tony Benn was first elected at the Bristol South East by-election, 1950, aged 25, the day after Thomas Teevan, who was aged 23, but Benn took the oath the day before Teevan, and so was Baby of the House for a single day.
- ^ Tony Benn became the youngest MP again after the 1951 general election, on the defeat of Teevan.
- ^ a b Elected on an abstentionist ticket, Philip Clarke did not take his seat. Peter Kirk was first elected at the 1955 general election, when he became the youngest MP to take his seat, but only became the youngest MP with the disqualification of Philip Clarke later in the year.
- ^ Basil de Ferranti was the youngest MP for 15 days between his taking his seat after the Morecambe by-election and Patrick Wolrige-Gordon taking his seat after the East Aberdeenshire by-election. (source).
- ^ a b Elected on an abstentionist ticket, Bobby Sands and Owen Carron did not take their seats; Stephen Dorrell remained the youngest MP actually sitting in the House of Commons.
- ^ Although several sources claim Claire Ward was the youngest MP during this period, she was 50 days older than Christopher Leslie.
United States
Currently the Baby of the House in the United States House of Representatives is Patrick T. McHenry (R-NC) who was born on October 22, 1975 . The Baby of the House before McHenry, who was elected at the age of 26 in 2000, was Adam H. Putnam (R), who was born on July 31, 1974 . Currently, however, the second youngest member of the House is André Carson (D) who was born on October 16, 1974 . After the 2008 elections, however, the new Baby of the House will be Rep.-elect Aaron Schock, born May 28, 1981 (age 27).
Currently the Baby of the Senate in the United States Senate is John E. Sununu (R) who was born on September 10, 1964 . The Baby of the Senate before Sununu, who was elected at the age of 38 in 2002, was Peter Fitzgerald (R), who was born on October 20, 1960 but is no longer serving in the Senate. With Sununu losing his re-election bid, the second youngest member of the Senate is Mark Pryor (D), who was born on January 10, 1963 will become the baby of the Senate on January 6, 2009. This is a rare instance where the new baby of the Senate is older than the previous baby of the Senate.
See also
Notes
- ^ Prior to 1832 minors could be elected; precise information on those MPs is often unclear.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae by-election
- ^ Joseph Aloysius Sweeney did not take his seat; the youngest MP actually sitting in the House of Commons was Oswald Mosley (Conservative, aged 22)
- ^ a b Became the youngest MP for a second time, on the death of the previous youngest MP
- ^ Tony Benn was first elected at the Bristol South East by-election, 1950, aged 25, the day after Thomas Teevan, who was aged 23, but Benn took the oath the day before Teevan, and so was Baby of the House for a single day.
- ^ Tony Benn became the youngest MP again after the 1951 general election, on the defeat of Teevan.
- ^ a b Elected on an abstentionist ticket, Philip Clarke did not take his seat. Peter Kirk was first elected at the 1955 general election, when he became the youngest MP to take his seat, but only became the youngest MP with the disqualification of Philip Clarke later in the year.
- ^ Basil de Ferranti was the youngest MP for 15 days between his taking his seat after the Morecambe by-election and Patrick Wolrige-Gordon taking his seat after the East Aberdeenshire by-election. (source).
- ^ a b Elected on an abstentionist ticket, Bobby Sands and Owen Carron did not take their seats; Stephen Dorrell remained the youngest MP actually sitting in the House of Commons.
- ^ Although several sources claim Claire Ward was the youngest MP during this period, she was 50 days older than Christopher Leslie.
References
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- This page was last modified on 30 November 2008, at 00:36.
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