Which of the following would be eligible to be a member of the U.S. House of Representatives?

Which of the following would be eligible to be a member of the U.S. House of Representatives?

• A. age 30 and naturalized U.S. citizen as a teenager
• B. age 23 and a natural-born U.S. citizen
• C. age 68 and became a naturalized U.S. citizen two years before
• D. a non-citizen who is age 35 and has permanent residency in the United States

Answer: (A)

The key idea is the constitutional eligibility for the House: a member must be at least 25 years old, have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and reside in the state they represent. A person who is 30 and has been a naturalized citizen since adolescence clearly meets both the age requirement and the seven-year citizenship rule, so they fit the qualifications. The other options fail: being 23 falls short of the age minimum; naturalized citizen only two years would not meet the seven-year requirement; and a non-citizen with permanent residency is not a citizen and therefore cannot serve. So the description of a 30-year-old naturalized citizen is eligible.

The key idea is the constitutional eligibility for the House: a member must be at least 25 years old, have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, and reside in the state they represent. A person who is 30 and has been a naturalized citizen since adolescence clearly meets both the age requirement and the seven-year citizenship rule, so they fit the qualifications. The other options fail: being 23 falls short of the age minimum; naturalized citizen only two years would not meet the seven-year requirement; and a non-citizen with permanent residency is not a citizen and therefore cannot serve. So the description of a 30-year-old naturalized citizen is eligible.