The Wisconsin Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house, Wisconsin State Senate, and the lower Wisconsin State Assembly, both of which have had Republican majorities since January 2011. With both houses combined, the legislature has 132 members representing an equal number of constituent districts. The Legislature convenes at the state capitol in Madison. The current sitting is the 106th Wisconsin Legislature. History The United States first organized Wisconsin in 1787 under the Northwest Ordinance after Great Britain yielded the land to them in the Treaty of Paris. It became the Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and a U.S. state on May 29, 1848. The 1850s saw an influx of European immigrants. The Legislature was dominated alternately by two political parties in its first century: the Republican and Progressive parties. In 1995, the Republican Party took control of the legislature for the first time since 1969, and have maintained their control of both houses since, except for a brief period between 2009 and 2011. In the 2016 Wisconsin elections, Republicans secured their largest majority in the Assembly since 1956, and in 2018, the party maintained their overwhelming control of the legislature despite receiving fewer total votes. Congressional districts have been disputed since at least 2016. After Republican Governor Scott Walker then signed a redistricting plan, at least one U.S. court found the districts to be unconstitutional partisan gerrymandering. Other controversies include "prison gerrymandering," where prisons are counted towards the population of a district despite its inmates coming from elsewhere. Membership Qualifications and terms To serve in the Wisconsin Legislature, individuals must be a resident of the state for at least one year preceding his or her election and be a qualified elector in the district they are elected to represent. All 99 members of the Wisconsin Assembly are elected in a two-year term cycle without term limits. Similarly, all 33 members of the Wisconsin Senate are elected in a four year cycle, also without term limits. Half of the Senate is elected every two years. Prior to an amendment in the Wisconsin Constitution in 1881, Assembly members served a one-year term, while Senators were elected every two years. The 106th Wisconsin Legislature began on January 3, 2023. Officers Members of both houses of the Legislature vote within their ranks to select presiding officers, such as the Speaker