What Does senate Mean
Senate is a notion that derives from the Latin senātus and that allows one of the bodies of the Legislative Power to be named , made up of members ( senators ) who are elected by the population through elections or, in some cases, appointed by an authority.
Written with an initial capital letter, the concept allows to name this political assembly and the venue where the sessions of the senators are held. The countries that have a Senate are usually those organized under a federal and bicameral regime.
In this context, the Legislative Power of a bicameral federal republic has a congress or parliament divided into two chambers: the Chamber of Deputies , also known as the Lower House , and the Senate or Upper House .
Although the characteristics vary according to the country, it is usual for the Chamber of Deputies to be made up of representatives elected by the entire population, while representatives voted by territory ( states , provinces , etc.) arrive at the Senate . The link between the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate depends on the Constitution of the nation.
In Canada , for example, members of the Senate are elected by the Governor General in agreement with the Prime Minister . There are 105 senators , whose seats are distributed according to the region .
The Senate in Spain is known by the name of the Upper House of the Cortes Generales, it comes to represent the Spanish people and is currently composed of a total of 266 members, although it is variable. Its members are elected primarily for what is universal, free, equal, direct and secret suffrage of citizens at the rate of 4 senators per province, although then the larger islands elect 3 and the smaller islands 1. Without forgetting that the cities autonomous communities of Ceuta and Melilla elect 2 each.
Other information of interest about the Senate in Spain are the following:
-His mandate lasts 4 years.
-It has several important bodies such as the President, the Bureau, the Board of Spokespersons, the commissions, the parliamentary groups, the Permanent Delegation and the territorial groups.
-Exerts three fundamental functions: political, territorial and legislative integration.
The Argentine Senate , on the other hand, is made up of members voted directly by the population. In this Upper House there are, for each province, three representatives in addition to the three senators for the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires , who are elected to serve terms of six years each.
Undoubtedly, within history the well-known Roman Senate has played a fundamental role, since it was one of the most important institutions of Ancient Rome. A total of 300 magistrates were those who formed this body, which was not only in charge of directing foreign policy or religion and finances but also of ratifying the laws that had been voted by the elections.
At first, it was only made up of 30 patricians and its work was basically consultative. However, with the passage of time and, above all, with the establishment of the Republic, its role was increased.