Well, here's one way it happens:
Since the start of the [current] 119th Congress, five members of the House—four Democrats and one Republican—have died. Several others have missed significant periods of work because of illnesses that either remain mysterious or have been revealed by the president as being quite serious.
In recent history, the deadliest session of Congress was the 117th, which took place in 2021–2023, when seven lawmakers died. With five deaths among the ranks, the 119th Congress is among the deadliest since then; the 115th Congress also had five deaths during its two-year span.
According to an analysis from Slate, 16 lawmakers have died in office in the past decade, which is greater than any stretch of three consecutive Congresses since the new millennium.
Replacement by mortality seems an extreme way to achieve generational transition.
Congress is old. The nation is in general not young; our median age is about 40, half younger, half older. Perhaps that's why we seem to have an enduring tolerance for politicians who have long reached their sell-by date.
Congresscritters of both parties take extended absences for health reasons. Republican Tom Kean Jr. who apparently has been absent for months is only 57. Maybe he's got a good excuse, but he's not saying. Meanwhile "Representative Frederica S. Wilson, 83, a Florida Democrat, has been absent from the Capitol for over a month." Apparently she had an eye ailment and apparently she is running for reelection. Despite Florida redistricting which favors Republicans, her Miami district remains a safe D seat, so expect her to be around for awhile.
Re-electing an 83 year old doesn't suggest dynamism. I'm grateful my Congresscritter Nancy Pelosi, 86, has decided to hang it up. Over her many years in office, I'd describe her as growing in wisdom.
Despite the impression one gets that Congress is stuffed with old people, the tilt toward the old has very slightly moderated in the last four years. The Pew Research Center reports:
The median age of voting members of the House of Representatives is now 57.5 years. That’s down from 57.9 at the start of the 118th Congress (2023-25), 58.9 in the 117th Congress (2021-23), 58.0 in the 116th (2019-21) and 58.4 in the 115th (2017-19).
The Senate, following the death or retirement of some of its oldest members, has reversed its aging trend. The new Senate’s median age is 64.7 years, down from 65.3 at the start of the previous Congress. The median age of the Senate had previously risen for three Congresses in a row: from 62.4 (115th) to 63.6 (116th), to 64.8 (117th) and to 65.3 (118th).
I'm a boomer, but I'm well aware that the time for the political dominance of my generation is so over. Last year New York Times Opinion published this delicious jeremiad against our monopolization of the power and wealth. I can't figure out how to embed the video here, but click this link for an experience.
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