Final answer:
White males are overrepresented in the U.S. Senate, while racial and ethnic minorities, such as African Americans and Latinos, remain underrepresented despite increases in congressional diversity.
Step-by-step explanation:
In the U.S. Senate, white males have historically been overrepresented relative to their population. Racial and ethnic minorities, on the other hand, have been underrepresented. For example, if African Americans were represented proportionally, there should be 12 senators, but in 2009 there was only one. However, should we consider the 117th Congress that began in January 2021, although the representation of racial and ethnic minorities increased, with African Americans and Latinos having 62 and 54 members respectively, Congress still remained predominantly White and male. As of 2019, African Americans composed 9.3 percent of state legislators but 13.4 percent of the U.S. population, and Latinos made up 4.4 percent of state legislators despite being 18.5 percent of the population.
Furthermore, legal protections for voting rights have not guaranteed equal voting power, as demonstrated by the continued underrepresentation of women and racial/ethnic minorities in U.S. Congress. Looking ahead, the U.S. Census Bureau projects that racial and ethnic populations will continue to rise in the next decades, with projections for 2050 showing a significantly more diverse population.