In a small room in one of the U.S. House office buildings on Friday, newly-elected members of Congress, along with their staff and press, were squished together for one of the last activities of congressional orientation: the office lottery.
The lottery is the answer to how incoming freshmen get to pick their office spaces. Since no member has seniority, it’s all a game of chance.
Each member marches up to the front of the room and reaches into a box that’s holding numbered buttons – 1 through 85. If they get a low number, they’ll be one of the first to choose an office. Those with high numbers miss out on primo office space.
Read this story now for free
To continue reading, sign up for our newsletter and get unlimited access to WABE.org
You can select your preferences for news and local content. We will never share your email address. Learn how your newsletter sign-up will support WABE and Public Media
