A long-term rise in the numbers of migrants, or the children of migrants, elected to the US Congress appears to have stalled, new research has found.

migrants and children of immigrants now make up at least 15 per cent of the current US Congress, according to an analysis by the Washington-based think tank, the Pew Research Centre.

This figure has not changed from the last Congress, making it the first time in the last four election cycles that there has not been an increase in the share or number of immigrants and children of immigrants.

“In total, at least 80 lawmakers are foreign born or have at least one parent who was born in another country, including 61 in the House and 19 in the Senate,” the Pew research report says.

The study voting members’ biographical information from the Congressional Research Service, news articles, congressional offices and other sources as of January 3, 2025, the first day of the new US Congress.

The study says the number of foreign-born politicians in Congress has increased to 19, with two in the Senate and 17 in the House of Representatives.

“The share of immigrants in Congress (4 per cent) remains lower than historical highs, and it’s lower than immigrants’ share of the US population overall (15.4 per cent in 2024),” the report says.

Children of migrants account for at least 61 lawmakers – 44 in the House and 17 in the Senate.

“This is down from at least 63 in the 118th Congress. It’s the first time the number of children of immigrants in Congress has decreased since the Centre began tracking this information for the 115th Congress. Lawmakers who have at least one immigrant parent currently make up about 11 per cent of all voting members,” the report says.

“Of the voting members of Congress who are immigrants or children of immigrants, Democrats (60) outnumber Republicans (19), continuing recent trends.”

One is an independent, Senator Bernie Sanders.

“In this Congress, 11 newly elected members are foreign born or have an immigrant parent. Democrat Andy Kim of New Jersey is the first Korean American senator, and Arizona Representative Yassamin Ansari is the first Iranian Democrat to serve in the House. Arizona Representative Abraham Hamadeh, the son of Syrian immigrants, and Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno, a Colombian immigrant, are the only Republicans in this group,” the report says.

“Immigrants and children of immigrants trace their roots to 37 places around the world. The most common place of origin is Mexico: 19 members have family heritage there. Seven trace their roots to Cuba, six to India and five to Germany.

“Nearly half of foreign-born lawmakers or those with immigrant parents represent Western states (38 of 80), including 20 who represent California. Smaller numbers represent Florida (7) and Illinois (6),” the report says.

Under the US Constitution, anyone taking office must have been a US citizen for seven years or more, be age 25 or older, and live in the state where they are elected.

Nine years of citizenship are needed to become a Senator, and the member must be 30 or older and live in the represented state when elected.

Read the full Pew report: Immigrants and children of immigrants make up at least 15% of 119th Congress | Pew Research Center