Hill Clout: California Is Still Golden

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• Chart: States' Clout
• Chart: Clout Per Member

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5. Florida

Points: 552

Previous rank: 5

Population rank: 4

Thanks to gerrymandering, the Sunshine State’s Congressional delegation was dominated by Republicans in the early part of the decade, which was a good thing for the state when the GOP was in command on Capitol Hill.

But the state’s demographic trends have outpaced the political maneuvering, and Democrats have picked up four House seats (and given one back) in the past two election cycles. That helps their cause with the Democrats now controlling Capitol Hill.

6. Massachusetts

Points: 546

Previous rank: 6

Population rank: 13

The Bay State delegation may not win any awards for diversity — 11 of 12 Members are white male Democrats — but it does pack a wallop when it comes to power and seniority.

Both Senators are committee chairmen — Sen. Edward Kennedy has the gavel at Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, and John Kerry moved from Small Business and Entrepreneurship to the way more critical Foreign Relations Committee.

On the House side, Rep. Barney Frank sometimes seems as if he’s running the country given his role as chairman of the Financial Services Committee. Rep. John Olver is an Appropriations cardinal, and Reps. Ed Markey, Richard Neal and James McGovern are all key players on their respective committees.

Massachusetts House Members — and other pols lower down the political food chain — occasionally grumble that there are so few opportunities to move on to the Senate (Kennedy was elected in 1962, Kerry in 1984). But that fact sure helps maintain the delegation’s significant clout.

7. Pennsylvania

Points: 518

Previous rank: 10

Population rank: 6

Brady’s promotion was the biggest development aiding the state’s ranking. And Democrats picked up one more House Member — Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper — to augment the four House seats and one Senate seat they gained in 2006.

The top Republican in the delegation, Sen. Arlen Specter, remains one of his party’s most important players, politically and institutionally.

8. Virginia

Points: 504

Previous rank: 7

Population rank: 12

The Old Dominion lost two senior Republicans, Sen. John Warner and Rep. Tom Davis, and GOP term limits forced Rep. Bob Goodlatte to give up his ranking member slot on the Agriculture Committee.

But those losses were offset to a certain extent by the arrival of three new Democrats in the delegation. And thanks largely to the presence of the Pentagon and major naval installations around Norfolk, Virginia continues to see more federal largess than just about anyplace else.

9. Maryland

Points: 492

Previous rank: 8

Population rank: 19

The Free State lost a senior Republican House Member in Wayne Gilchrest, and it now has two House freshmen (Frank Kratovil and Donna Edwards, who is a “super freshman,” having won a special election last year) and a House sophomore, John Sarbanes.

But it also has House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D). And Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D), who holds two leadership posts. And Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D), the dean of the Senate women and an Appropriations cardinal.

And to use another sports metaphor with the basketball tournament here, while it doesn’t show up in the box score, the presence of Baltimore native Nancy Pelosi as Speaker sure doesn’t hurt.

10. Illinois

Points: 463

Previous rank: 9

Population rank: 5

Illinois voters probably don’t mind the fact that their Congressional delegation has slipped one notch in the Roll Call survey. They’ve now got the president of the United States, his chief of staff and the secretary of Transportation — Congressional alumni all. That seems like a pretty good trade, from Illinois’ perspective.

Correction: March 17, 2009

The article incorrectly reported that the Massachusetts Congressional delegation is all male. That had been the case until Rep. Niki Tsongas (D) won a special election in October 2007.