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| {{Elections}} | |||
| A '''constituent''' is someone who can or does appoint or elect (and often by implication can also remove or recall) another as his agent or ]. A '']'' is all the constituents of a particular agent or representative. | |||
| Depending on the context, another closely-related meaning of ''constituent'' is that of a ] residing in the area governed, represented, or otherwise served by a ]; sometimes this is restricted to citizens who elected the politician. All the constituents who are registered to vote are referred to as the ]. | |||
| '''Constituent service''' is representatives helping their constituents handle problems that can be best handled by a representative getting involved. Members of the ] (both Representatives and Senators) working in Washington, D.C. have a governmentally staffed district office to aid in constituent service. Many state legislatures have followed suit. In the UK, service of this type is named '''constituency casework''' - ] will appoint staff using their Parliamentary staffing allowance to appoint ]s to assist constituents with problems. | |||
| Elected officials tend to believe that responsiveness to their constituents is their highest professional responsibility. A longtime ] elected official, State Rep. ] of ], said that "Opinions about political and governmental issues are always appropriate to share with elected officials. All too often, the gap between what people think and what they express is very wide, creating a vacuum filled of interests not representative of the general public." | |||
| In a looser sense, corporations and other such organizations can be referred to as constituents, if they have a significant presence in an area. | |||
| ''']''' is a phrase sometimes used, usually by official institutions, in contexts in which a number of countries make up a larger entity or grouping. | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| {{Elections-small}} | |||
| *] | |||
| ] | |||
| {{poli-stub}} | |||