Methodology
Data sources and calculation methods
VOC·US editorial policy: We take no position on whether any representative's voting record is good or bad. We present official government data and let citizens judge. Every metric on this page has a documented source and calculation method.
Voting Record
Data Source
Congress.gov API (official U.S. government)
Update Frequency
Daily via Vercel Cron
How It's Calculated
Roll-call votes fetched from the Congress.gov member votes endpoint. Covers the 118th–119th Congress (2023–present). Procedural votes are included. Vote outcomes: YES, NO, NOT VOTING, PRESENT.
Note: Congress.gov is the official source for all federal legislative data. No editorial judgment is applied — we display votes exactly as recorded.
Missed Votes %
Data Source
Congress.gov API
Update Frequency
Daily
How It's Calculated
(missedVotes ÷ totalVotes) × 100. missedVotes = roll-call votes where outcome = NOT VOTING. totalVotes = all roll-call votes during current term.
Note: National average is approximately 3–5%. High missed vote rates may reflect scheduling conflicts, illness, committee work, or strategic absences.
Party Alignment %
Data Source
VOC·US calculation from Congress.gov data
Update Frequency
Daily
How It's Calculated
(votes cast with party majority ÷ total votes cast) × 100. Only counts contested votes where a clear party majority exists (≥60% of party voted together). Abstentions and NOT VOTING are excluded from the denominator.
Note: VOC·US takes no position on whether high or low party alignment is desirable. We present the number — you decide what it means.
Platform Approval Score
Data Source
VOC·US user ratings — not a scientific poll
Update Frequency
Real-time
How It's Calculated
Simple average of all approval ratings (0–100) submitted by VOC·US users for this member. Minimum 1 rating required to display. Ratings are 1 per user per member, and can be updated at any time.
Note: This score reflects the opinions of VOC·US users only — not the general U.S. population. It is clearly labeled as a platform metric, not an independent poll.
Values Alignment %
Data Source
VOC·US algorithm + Congress.gov vote data
Update Frequency
Recalculated each time a user takes the quiz
How It's Calculated
Each quiz answer is matched to 3–5 recent roll-call votes on that topic. The representative's vote on each bill is scored as aligned (1) or misaligned (0) with the user's stated position. The final score = weighted average across all 7 topics. Topics with no available vote data are excluded from the calculation.
Note: The quiz-to-vote mapping is maintained by the VOC·US team and updated when new relevant legislation is voted on. The alignment score measures legislative votes only — not stated positions or public statements.
Campaign Finance
Data Source
FEC API (Federal Election Commission — official U.S. government)
Update Frequency
Weekly via Vercel Cron
How It's Calculated
Total raised = sum of all receipts in the current election cycle from FEC filing data. Individual total = all contributions from individuals. PAC total = all contributions from Political Action Committees. Donor industries use FEC + Center for Responsive Politics (OpenSecrets) industry categorization.
Note: FEC data is the official legal record of campaign finance in the United States. All candidates are required by law to report contributions above $200.
Activity Score
Data Source
VOC·US engagement tracking
Update Frequency
Nightly batch recalculation
How It's Calculated
Points awarded per action: Submit approval rating (+10), Complete Values Quiz (+25), Vote in Citizen Poll (+15), Follow a bill (+5), Share a result (+10), Daily visit streak (+2/day), Refer a new user (+50). Score is cumulative and never decreases.
Note: Activity score is used to determine poll eligibility (≥50 required) and Civic Score tier. It is not used in any B2B data products.
Challenger Fundraising
Data Source
FEC API
Update Frequency
Weekly
How It's Calculated
All FEC-registered candidates for the same congressional seat in the current or upcoming election cycle. Total raised from FEC candidate financial summary endpoint.
Note: Challenger data may be incomplete early in an election cycle if candidates have not yet filed their initial FEC reports.