What is the state of the Union Address?
The State of the Union Address (sometimes abbreviated to SOTU) is an annual message delivered by the president of the United States to the U.S. Congress near the beginning of each calendar year on the current condition of the nation.
When is the state of the Union usually given?
Since 1934 during the first term of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd U.S. President, the State of the Union has typically been given in January.
What is the state of the State address called?
For most of them, it is called the State of the State address. In Iowa, it is called the Condition of the State Address; in Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, the speech is called the State of the Commonwealth address. The mayor of Washington, D.C. gives a State of the District address.
Was the state of the Union the longest in American history?
While yesterday's address will linger long in the memory due to its sheer divisiveness, it's also notable as being one of the longest State of the Unions in American history.

How long was the shortest State of the Union address?
With their speaker were on his left…". His demeanor gave the event the respect and importance that it has been given since his first speech. For all the importance that his speech has had, it is the shortest State of the Union Address that has been given to this day, at only 1,089 words.
How long was the longest State of the Union?
It was the longest State of the Union address in recorded history at 1 hour and 28 minutes. This State of the Union address is notable for being the first since President Reagan's 1986 address at which all 9 members of the Supreme Court were absent.
How long is 2022 State of the Union address?
2022 State of the Union AddressDateMarch 1, 2022Time9:00 pm (EST)Duration1 hour, 1 minuteVenueHouse Chamber, United States CapitolLocationWashington, D.C.7 more rows
How long has the State of the Union address been around?
George Washington's handwritten notes for the first State of the Union Address, January 8, 1790. Full 7 pages.
What is the longest State in the United States?
AlaskaUS State Flags:No.Statesq mi1Alaska665,3846Arizona113,99029Arkansas53,1783California163,69546 more rows
How many State of the Union addresses are there?
Including President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.'s address, there have been a total of 98 in-person Annual Messages/State of the Union Addresses. Since President Woodrow Wilson's 1913 address, there have been a total of 86 in-person addresses.
What is the reason for the State of the Union address?
The State of the Union Message is a message from the President to Congress, usually given once a year in January or February. In the message, the President talks about important issues facing Americans and offers his ideas on solving the nation's problems, including suggestions for new laws and policies.
Who was the president for the union?
Abraham Lincoln became the United States' 16th President in 1861, issuing the Emancipation Proclamation that declared forever free those slaves within the Confederacy in 1863.
Which Cabinet member does not attend the State of the Union?
Cabinet Members Who Did Not Attend the State of the Union AddressDateAbsent Cabinet MemberFeb 5, 2019Secretary of Energy Rick PerryJan 30, 2018Secretary of Agriculture Sonny PerdueFeb 28, 2017**Secretary of Veterans Affairs David ShulkinJan 12, 2016Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson35 more rows
What president gave the first State of the Union Address?
Franklin Roosevelt referred to it as the "State of the Union Address," a title that became official during the Harry Truman administration. The first radio broadcast of the message occurred in 1923, following a limited but successful experimentation with radio in 1922.
What is Sotu stand for?
State of the UnionState of the Union (message).
When was the State of the Union address given?
President Franklin D. Roosevelt giving his State of the Union address on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 7, 1943. The State of the Union Address (sometimes abbreviated to SOTU) is an annual message delivered by the president of the United States to the U.S. Congress near the beginning of each calendar year on the current condition of the nation. ...
What is the purpose of the State of the Union address?
Constitution for the president to periodically "give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient." During most of the country's first century, the president primarily submitted only a written report to Congress. After 1913, Woodrow Wilson, the 28th U.S. President, began the regular practice of delivering the address to Congress in person as a way to rally support for the president's agenda. With the advent of radio and television, the address is now broadcast live across the country on many networks.
How long does the State of the Union speech last?
State of the Union speeches usually last a little over an hour , partly because of the large amounts of applause that occur from the audience throughout. The applause is often political in tone, with many portions of the speech being applauded only by members of the president's own party. As non-political officeholders, members of the Supreme Court or the Joint Chiefs of Staff rarely applaud in order to retain the appearance of political impartiality. In recent years, the presiding officers of the House and the Senate, the speaker and the vice president, respectively, have departed from the neutrality expected of presiding officers of deliberative bodies, as they, too, stand and applaud in response to the remarks of the president with which they agree.
What time does the President give his speech?
To reach the largest audience, the speech, once given during the day, is now typically given in the evening, after 9 p.m. ET ( UTC-5 ).
How many guests can a member of Congress have at the State of the Union address?
Every member of Congress can bring one guest to the State of the Union address. The president may invite up to 24 guests with the First Lady in her box. The speaker of the House may invite up to 24 guests in the speaker's box. Seating for Congress on the main floor is by a first-in, first-served basis with no reservations. The Cabinet, Supreme Court justices, members of the Diplomatic Corps, and the military leaders constituting the Joint Chiefs of Staff have reserved seating.
When does the 20th amendment start?
The Twentieth Amendment also established January 20 as the beginning of the presidential term. In years when a new president is inaugurated, the outgoing president may deliver a final State of the Union message, but none has done so since Jimmy Carter sent a written message in 1981.
When is the State of the Union?
Since Franklin Roosevelt, the State of the Union is given typically each January before a joint session of the United States Congress and is held in the House of Representatives chamber of the United States Capitol. Newly inaugurated presidents generally deliver an address to Congress in February of the first year of their term, but this speech is not officially considered to be a "State of the Union".
How long did the President speak?
The president spoke for one hour, 18 minutes and 4 seconds last night and according to tracking by The American Presidency Project, that makes it the sixth-longest State of the Union on record.
How long was Bill Clinton's speech?
That record goes to Bill Clinton who spoke for one hour, 28 minutes and 49 seconds on January 27, 2000. That was Clinton's last State of the Union before he left office. He started off by focusing on America's levels of peace, prosperity, social progress, a lack of internal crises and external threats before touching on a range ...
Overview
History
DATE | FORMAT | WORDS |
---|---|---|
December 5, 1848 | written | 21309 |
December 8, 1846 | written | 18222 |
average | average | 18014 |
December 7, 1847 | written | 16414 |
December 6, 1858 | written | 16349 |
December 2, 1845 | written | 16111 |
December 6, 1830 | written | 15114 |
average | average | 14097 |
Formality
Delivery of the speech
George Washington delivered the first regular annual message before a joint session of Congress on January 8, 1790, in New York City, then the provisional U.S. capital. In 1801, Thomas Jefferson discontinued the practice of delivering the address in person, regarding it as too monarchical (similar to the Speech from the Throne). Instead, the address was written and then sent to Congress …
Opposition response
The practice arises from a duty of the president under the State of the Union Clause of the U.S. Constitution:
He shall from time to time give to Congress information of the State of the Union and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.— Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution
Significance
Because the address is made to a joint session of Congress, the House and Senate must each pass a resolution setting a date and time for the joint session. Then, a formal invitation is made by the speaker of the House to the president typically several weeks before the appointed date.
Every member of Congress can bring one guest to the State of the Union addre…
Local versions
Since 1966, the speech has been followed on television by a response or rebuttal by a member of the major political party opposing the president's party. The response is typically broadcast from a studio with no audience. In 1970, the Democratic Party put together a TV program with their speech to reply to President Nixon, as well as a televised response to Nixon's written speech in 1973. The same was done by Democrats for President Reagan's speeches in 1982 and 1985. Th…
Historic speeches
Although much of the pomp and ceremony behind the State of the Union address is governed by tradition rather than law, in modern times, the event is seen as one of the most important in the US political calendar. It is one of the few instances when all three branches of the US government are assembled under one roof: members of both houses of Congress constituting the legislature, the president's Cabinet constituting the executive, and the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of t…