Who is one of your state’s U.S. senators now?

Why this is the answer

This is one of the few questions with no fixed answer. Every state elects two U.S. senators, and the officer wants the name of either one of yours. You do not need both, although knowing both gives you a spare if one name slips away during the interview. Since each senator represents all the people of the state, it does not matter where in the state you live. Two neighbors in different congressional districts have different House members but the same two senators, which makes this question easier than the one about your representative: knowing your state is enough. The study guide and the test updates page both send you to senate.gov to find your state's senators. Check the names close to your interview date, not when you start studying. USCIS says some answers change because of elections or appointments, and that you must answer with the name of the official serving at the time of your interview. Senators change more often than people expect. A third of the seats are chosen every second year, and when a seat becomes vacant in the middle of a term, the 17th Amendment lets a state legislature allow the governor to make a temporary appointment until the voters fill the seat in an election. A name you memorized a year ago may no longer be right. If you live in Washington, D.C., or in a U.S. territory, the correct answer is different: you say that D.C., or your territory, has no U.S. senators. The study guide gives the reason for D.C.: it is not a state, and the Constitution gives Senate seats to states. Offering the name of some other official in its place does not help; the accepted reply is that there are none. Two errors come up often. One is giving the name of a state senator, a member of your state legislature, instead of a U.S. senator. The other is naming your House representative. Both are elected officials, but neither sits in the U.S. Senate.