- 1.2.1House Elections & Electorsnot yet published Article I, Section 2, Clause 1 establishes a two-year election cycle and a franchise link that delegates voter qualifications to the states — a federalism compromise whose diagnostic strain now lies in franchise administration, not franchise definition.
- 1.2.2Qualifications of Representativesnot yet published The qualifications clause sets three requirements for House membership — age, citizenship, and inhabitancy — that operate as both a floor and a ceiling, leaving the broadest discretion to the electorate and generating no significant structural strain.
- 1.2.3Apportionment and Censusnot yet published The apportionment clause links representation to population, mandates a decennial census, and guarantees every state at least one House seat. The text holds; the strain is the statutory 435-member cap, which progressively dilutes per-capita representation and converts apportionment into zero-sum redistribution.
- 1.2.4Vacanciesnot yet published The vacancy clause requires governors to call special elections when House seats become empty — a mandatory duty, never appointment. The elections-only principle holds; the strain is the clause's silence on timing, which enables strategic delay.
- 1.2.5Officers and Impeachment Powernot yet published This clause contains two structurally distinct powers: choosing the Speaker and other officers (internal self-governance) and the sole power of impeachment (external accountability). The Speaker's evolution from neutral presider to partisan chief is one of the widest text-to-practice gaps in the system; impeachment's effectiveness depends on bipartisan will that partisan polarization progressively erodes.