House of representatives biography

Chamber of a bicameral legislature

A lower house is the lower chamber of a bicamerallegislature, where the other chamber is the upper house.^[1] Although seen as "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has come to wield more power or otherwise exert significant political influence.

Common attributes

In comparison with the upper house, lower houses frequently display certain characteristics (though they vary by jurisdiction).

Powers

In a parliamentary system, the lower house:

• In the modern era, has much more power, usually due to restrictions on the upper house.
  • Exceptions to this are Australia, Italy, and Romania, where the upper and lower houses have similar power.
• Is able to override the upper house in some ways.
• Can vote a motion of no confidence against the government, as well as vote for or against any proposed candidate for head of government at the beginning of the parliamentary term.