Baby of the House

Becoming the Baby of the House is regarded as something of an achievement despite the lack of any special treatment that comes with the title. However, some MPs who have held the position for a considerable period – Matthew Taylor was the Baby of the House for over ten years – have found it somewhat embarrassing, as it may suggest that they have a lack of experience, although many holders of the title have gone on to enjoy long and distinguished parliamentary careers.

At the turn of the twenty-first century (August 1999 to September 2001), all three of the leaders of the main political parties had been the youngest MPs in their party when they began their political careers (William Hague, Tony Blair, Charles Kennedy).

Of those whose ages can be verified, the youngest MP since the Reform Act of 1832[2] is Mhairi Black, elected in 2015 aged 20 years 237 days.[3] The age of candidacy for Parliament was lowered from 21 to 18 by the Electoral Administration Act of 2006. William Pitt the Younger was elected at 21 and became Prime Minister two years later in 1783.

In Australia the term is rarely used. Most MPs and Senators are elected usually only in their thirties and later but some prominent MPs have been elected rather early in life including Prime Ministers Malcolm Fraser and Paul Keating who were both elected at age 25 in 1955 and 1969 respectively. The youngest Baby of the House was Wyatt Roy. He was elected at age 20 in 2010, being the youngest person ever to be elected to an Australian parliament.[14]

The current Baby of the House is the Member for Herbert Phillip Thompson (age 32). The current Baby of the Senate is Senator Jordon Steele-John (age 25).[15]

The youngest-ever elected member of the House of Commons of Canada is Pierre-Luc Dusseault, who was elected at the age of 19 years and 11 months in 2011. Dusseault is the youngest MP in Canadian history.[16] In the past, MPs such as Sean O'Sullivan, Pierre Poilievre, Andrew Scheer, Claude-André Lachance and Lorne Nystrom have also held the distinction.

Eric Melillo is the youngest current MP, representing the riding of Kenora (electoral district), Ontario, a member of the Conservative Party of Canada; born in 1998, elected at 21 years of age. The youngest member of the Senate of Canada is Patrick Brazeau of Repentigny, Quebec; born 1974, appointed at 34 years of age.

Marion Maréchal-Le Pen, baby of the French national assembly.

The youngest member of the French national assembly ever is Marion Maréchal-Le Pen (National Rally), elected in 2012 aged 22.

In Hong Kong the term is rarely used. The current baby of the Legislative Council is Ho Kai-ming whose record was interrupted by Au Nok-hin until Au was disqualified in December 2019, as the 2018 by-election was ruled unlawful. Au was elected in the 2018 Hong Kong Island by-election after three younger members of the Legislative Council, the youngest-ever elected member Nathan Law, as well as Yau Wai-ching and Sixtus Leung were all disqualified over the oath-taking controversy.

[ (b) – by-election]

The youngest-ever elected member of the National Assembly is Ilona Burka, who became MP at the age of 19 years, 5 months and 13 days on 12 May 1971, following the 1971 parliamentary election.

Source:[17]

In the Republic of Ireland the term is rarely used, as TDs normally enter the Dáil after a political career in local government, usually only in their thirties and later. The current baby of the Dáil is the Fianna Fáil deputy James O'Connor (Cork East), who was 22 years and 7 months old when elected in February 2020.

The youngest TD of all time was William J. Murphy, elected age 21 years 29 days; the youngest female TD was Kathleen O'Connor, 21 years 7 months.

In Israel the term is rarely used. The youngest member of current Knesset is Sondos Saleh of Ta'al, elected in 2020 aged 33. The youngest member of the Knesset ever is Moshe Nissim, elected in 1959 aged 24.

Enzo Lattuca, baby of the Italian Chamber of Deputies (2013-2018).

Angela Raffa, baby of the Italian Chamber of Deputies (since 2018).

The youngest member of the Chamber of Deputies ever is Enzo Lattuca (PD), elected in 2013 aged 25.

The current youngest member of the Chamber of Deputies Is Angela Raffa (M5S), elected in 2018 aged 25.

The youngest MP in Malawi was Angela Zachepa who was voted in as MP at age 21.[18]

In Malaysia the term is rarely used. Most MPs and Senators are elected usually only in their thirties and later but some prominent MPs have been elected rather early in life including former Prime Minister Najib Razak who was elected at 22 years and 6 months in age in 1976. The youngest-ever elected member of the Dewan Rakyat is Prabakaran Parameswaran, who was elected at the age of 22 years and 3 months in 2018. Prabakaran is the youngest MP in Malaysian history and currently serving as well.[19]

In Malaysia, any citizen 21 years of age or older can become a candidate and be elected to the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Undangan Negeri.[20] Minimum age for the Senator is 30 by constitution.

Swarbrick in 2017

The term "Baby of the House" is rarely used in New Zealand. The current Baby of the House is Chlöe Swarbrick of the Green Party, who was elected on 24 September 2017 aged 23.[21] Swarbrick succeeded Todd Barclay of the National Party, who had been elected at the 2014 general election at age 24.[22][23]

In the Congress of the Philippines, the term "Baby of the House" is rarely used; the term "Benjamin" of the chamber is used instead[24]. Special treatment is not given to the youngest member of either chamber. However, by tradition, the youngest member of the chamber usually administers the oath of office to their incoming leader (i.e. President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives).

The minimum age for being a member of the House of Representatives is 25 years old, while for the Senate, it is 35, as stipulated in the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines. In 1933, Benigno Aquino, Sr. became senator at the age of 33;[25] the Jones Law, which created the Senate, had prescribed the minimum age of 30.

The current Benjamin of the House is Representative Braeden John Biron of the 4th District of Iloilo. Meanwhile, Senator Manny Pacquiao has been the youngest Senator since 2016.[26]

The current titleholder is Hlomela Bucwa.

The current Baby of the House is Ebba Hermansson (entered in September 2018 at the age of 22). The youngest person ever to be elected MP to a Swedish parliament is Anton Abele who was only aged 18 when elected in September 2010.[35] Current record holder for the world's youngest-ever elected MP is Anton Abele, who was at 18 years elected to the Swedish Parliament for his activism against street violence.[36]

At 19 years old, Proscovia Alengot Oromait was the world's youngest MP and youngest ever MP in Africa when elected in 2011. Oromait is a member of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) in Uganda and was a representative of Usuk County until 2016

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, baby of the American House of Representatives.

While the term is used in the Commonwealth Parliaments, Baby of the House or Senate is not in general contemporary use in the United States, nor does being the youngest member confer special treatment in either house of Congress.

Members of the US Congress tend to be older than parliamentarians elsewhere in the English-speaking world, a main factor being that the minimum ages for members of Congress is written into Article One of the United States Constitution, which forbids those under the age of 25 from serving in the House, and those under the age of 30 from serving in the Senate. Moreover, election to the federal Congress is expensive and requires extensive contacts and recognition across a very wide area. Individuals aiming to serve in the federal legislature generally seek election to the state legislature (which generally have lower minimum ages for entry) or other state office before seeking to serve in Washington.

In the 116th Congress, which began on 3 January 2019, the youngest member of the United States House of Representatives is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who was born on (1989-10-03) 3 October 1989, and was first elected in 2018 a few weeks after her 29th birthday. She is also the youngest woman elected to the House in U.S. history.[37]

Currently the youngest US Senator is Josh Hawley, born on (1979-12-31) 31 December 1979, and first elected in 2018.

• Dean of the House
• Dean of the Senate
• Father of the House

• Youngest Members of Parliament