For the 7th Consecutive Year, Senator Collins Ranked Most Bipartisan U.S. Senator
Washington, D.C. - A study released today by the Lugar Center and The McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University ranks U.S. Senator Susan Collins as the most bipartisan Senator for the seventh consecutive year.
“I have long believed that Congress produces the best legislation when it incorporates the ideas of both Republicans and Democrats. That spirit of bipartisan cooperation is needed now more than ever to confront the unprecedented crisis facing our nation,” said Senator Collins. “Congress has shown it is capable of reaching across the aisle to help protect Americans’ health and support our communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. I will continue my efforts to bring people on both sides of the aisle together as we seek to safely reopen our society. I applaud the Lugar Center’s ongoing work to encourage civility in Congress.”
“We congratulate Senator Collins for earning the highest Bipartisan Index score we have ever recorded by a Senator,” said Dan Diller, Policy Director at the Lugar Center. “Her record-breaking 2019 mark is all the more notable in that she has outscored all Senators in the Bipartisan Index for an unprecedented seven consecutive years. No other Senator comes close to Senator Collins in the frequency and consistency with which she has worked with the other party on legislation. She is the gold standard for bipartisanship in the U.S Congress.”
Although most grading systems of Members of Congress are based on partisan, parochial, or special-interest standards, the Bipartisan Index uses an objective formula to give each Member an overall score based on two major criteria:
- The frequency with which a member sponsors bills co-sponsored by at least one member of the opposing party
- The frequency with which a member co-sponsors bills introduced by members of the opposite party
Senator Collins has long been recognized for her efforts to reach across the aisle and find consensus. In 2016, she received the inaugural Jacob Javits Prize for Bipartisan Leadership for her exemplary efforts to facilitate bipartisanship throughout her Senate service.
Overview of Bipartisan Index Methodology:
The Lugar Center and Georgetown University's McCourt School of Public Policy’s Bipartisan Index is a non-partisan ranking of how often each Member of Congress works across party lines based on sponsorships and co-sponsorships of legislation.
Sponsorships and co-sponsorships are positions Senators carefully consider and often reflect their long-term priorities. The Index chose to measure this activity in order to focus the index on bipartisanship and cooperation, rather than where members sit on the ideological spectrum.
For a full description of the methodology behind the Bipartisan Index, please visit the Lugar Center’s website.
