NCCPPR North Carolina Center for Public Policy Research

The newest members of the General Assembly are changing the face of the state’s legislature.  The 2011 legislature has 42 freshmen – 15 state Senators and 27 Representatives.  This is the largest class of first-term legislators since 2003.  Among the first-term legislators are four women, four African Americans, and 32 Republicans, as well as an unaffiliated Representative who chose to join the Republican caucus.  The average age of the first-term legislators is 54 years, compared to the average age of 60 for non-freshmen.  The impact of this freshman clas