CongressMCP-full

Overview Schema Source Related Servers Discussions Admin

Congressional Voting and Nominations - House votes and presidential nominations

voting_and_nominations

Retrieve House votes and presidential nominations from Congress.gov, including member-level vote records, nomination actions, committees, and hearings.

Instructions

Congressional Voting and Nominations - Access House votes and presidential nominations.

HOUSE VOTING (6 operations):
• get_house_votes_by_congress/session, get_house_vote_details/enhanced
• get_house_vote_member_votes/xml - Individual member vote records

NOMINATIONS (7 operations):
• search_nominations, get_latest_nominations, get_nomination_details
• get_nomination_actions/committees/hearings/nominees, get_nominations_by_congress

REQUIRED PARAMETERS (the schema marks every parameter optional because
one shared schema covers every operation -- these operations fail
without the values below):
• congress -- get_house_votes_by_congress, get_nominations_by_congress
• congress + session -- get_house_votes_by_session
• congress + session + vote_number -- get_house_vote_details(_enhanced),
  get_house_vote_member_votes(_xml)
• congress + nomination_number -- get_nomination_details,
  get_nomination_actions, get_nomination_committees,
  get_nomination_hearings
• congress + nomination_number + ordinal -- get_nomination_nominees
(search_nominations, get_latest_nominations need none of the above)

Key params: operation, congress, session, vote_number, keywords, nomination_number
Returns structured vote/nomination data with member details and legislative actions.

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`sort`	No
`limit`	No
`ordinal`	No
`session`	No
`to_date`	No
`congress`	No
`keywords`	No
`from_date`	No
`operation`	Yes
`vote_number`	No
`nomination_number`	No

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`error`	No	Present when success is false: the section-9 error envelope
`items`	No	Results of other kinds (per-member votes), as parsed from the source data
`votes`	No	Vote results
`success`	Yes	Whether the operation was successful
`summary`	Yes	Human-readable summary of the results
`item_kind`	No	What `items` contains (member_vote, ...)
`operation`	Yes	The operation that was performed
`nominations`	No	Nomination results
`results_count`	Yes	Number of items returned (equals the populated list's length)

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed55 schema fields changedv2.2.0Aug 26, 2026

addedOutput schema / $defs / ErrorInfo

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Section-9 error payload: stable code, human message, secret-safe\ndetail, actionable remediation. Mirrors the bill-text tools' envelope\n(documentation/fulltext/04-tools-responses.md section 9).",
+  "properties": {
+    "code": {
+      "description": "Stable machine-readable error code (lowercase)",
+      "title": "Code",
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    "detail": {
+      "anyOf": [
+        {
+          "additionalProperties": true,
+          "type": "object"
+        },
+        {
+          "type": "null"
+        }
+      ],
+      "default": null,
+      "description": "Structured context; never carries secrets",
+      "title": "Detail"
+    },
+    "message": {
+      "description": "What went wrong",
+      "title": "Message",
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    "remediation": {
+      "anyOf": [
+        {
+          "type": "string"
+        },
+        {
+          "type": "null"
+        }
+      ],
+      "default": null,
+      "description": "What the caller should do about it",
+      "title": "Remediation"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "code",
+    "message"
+  ],
+  "title": "ErrorInfo",
+  "type": "object"
+}

changedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / description

Previous value: -"Summary of a nomination."New value: +"Summary of a nomination (list-level fields)."

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / citation

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Citation (e.g. PN123)",
+  "title": "Citation"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / congress

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Congress number",
+  "title": "Congress"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / is_military

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "boolean"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Whether a military nomination",
+  "title": "Is Military"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / latest_action

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Most recent action text",
+  "title": "Latest Action"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / nominee / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / nominee / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / nominee / description

Previous value: -"Name of the nominee"New value: +"Nominee name (detail operations only)"

removedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / nominee / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / organization / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / organization / default
```
Added value: +null
```
removedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / organization / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / position / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / position / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / position / description

Previous value: -"Position being nominated for"New value: +"Position (detail operations only)"

removedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / position / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```
addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / received_date / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / received_date / description

Previous value: -"Date nomination was received"New value: +"Date the nomination was received"

removedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / status

Removed value: -{
-  "anyOf": [
-    {
-      "type": "string"
-    },
-    {
-      "type": "null"
-    }
-  ],
-  "description": "Current status of nomination",
-  "title": "Status"
-}

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / update_date

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Last update timestamp",
+  "title": "Update Date"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / url / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / properties / url / description

Previous value: -"Congress.gov URL for nomination details"New value: +"Congress.gov API URL for nomination details"

changedOutput schema / $defs / NominationSummary / required

Previous value: -[
-  "nomination_number",
-  "nominee",
-  "position",
-  "organization",
-  "received_date",
-  "status",
-  "url"
-]New value: +[
+  "nomination_number"
+]

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / description

Previous value: -"Summary of a vote."New value: +"Summary of a House roll-call vote (list-level fields)."

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / chamber / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / chamber / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / chamber / description

Previous value: -"Chamber where vote occurred (House/Senate)"New value: +"Chamber where the vote occurred"

removedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / chamber / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / congress

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Congress number",
+  "title": "Congress"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / date / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / date / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / date / description

Previous value: -"Date of the vote"New value: +"Start date/time of the vote"

removedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / date / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

removedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / description

Removed value: -{
-  "description": "Description of what was voted on",
-  "title": "Description",
-  "type": "string"
-}

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / legislation

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Legislation voted on (e.g. 'HR 5348')",
+  "title": "Legislation"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / result / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / result / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / result / description

Previous value: -"Vote result (Passed, Failed, etc.)"New value: +"Vote result (Passed, Failed, ...)"

removedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / result / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / session

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Session number",
+  "title": "Session"
+}

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / url / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / url / description

Previous value: -"Congress.gov URL for vote details"New value: +"Congress.gov API URL for vote details"

removedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_counts / additionalProperties
```
Removed value: -{
-  "type": "integer"
-}
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_counts / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "additionalProperties": {
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_counts / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_counts / description

Previous value: -"Vote breakdown (Yea, Nay, Present, Not Voting)"New value: +"Tallies (detail operations only)"

removedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_counts / type
```
Removed value: -"object"
```
changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_number / description
```
Previous value: -"Vote number"New value: +"Roll call vote number"
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / properties / vote_type

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Vote type (Yea-And-Nay, 2/3 Yea-And-Nay, ...)",
+  "title": "Vote Type"
+}

changedOutput schema / $defs / VoteSummary / required

Previous value: -[
-  "vote_number",
-  "chamber",
-  "date",
-  "description",
-  "result",
-  "vote_counts",
-  "url"
-]New value: +[
+  "vote_number"
+]

addedOutput schema / properties / error

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "$ref": "#/$defs/ErrorInfo"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Present when success is false: the section-9 error envelope"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / item_kind

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "What `items` contains (member_vote, ...)",
+  "title": "Item Kind"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / items

Added value: +{
+  "default": [],
+  "description": "Results of other kinds (per-member votes), as parsed from the source data",
+  "items": {
+    "additionalProperties": true,
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  "title": "Items",
+  "type": "array"
+}

changedOutput schema / properties / results_count / description

Previous value: -"Number of results returned"New value: +"Number of items returned (equals the populated list's length)"

Changed11 schema fields changedv2.1.0Aug 21, 2026

addedOutput schema / $defs

Added value: +{
+  "NominationSummary": {
+    "description": "Summary of a nomination.",
+    "properties": {
+      "nomination_number": {
+        "description": "Nomination number",
+        "title": "Nomination Number",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "nominee": {
+        "description": "Name of the nominee",
+        "title": "Nominee",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "organization": {
+        "description": "Organization/agency",
+        "title": "Organization",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "position": {
+        "description": "Position being nominated for",
+        "title": "Position",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "received_date": {
+        "anyOf": [
+          {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          {
+            "type": "null"
+          }
+        ],
+        "description": "Date nomination was received",
+        "title": "Received Date"
+      },
+      "status": {
+        "anyOf": [
+          {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          {
+            "type": "null"
+          }
+        ],
+        "description": "Current status of nomination",
+        "title": "Status"
+      },
+      "url": {
+        "anyOf": [
+          {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          {
+            "type": "null"
+          }
+        ],
+        "description": "Congress.gov URL for nomination details",
+        "title": "Url"
+      }
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "nomination_number",
+      "nominee",
+      "position",
+      "organization",
+      "received_date",
+      "status",
+      "url"
+    ],
+    "title": "NominationSummary",
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  "VoteSummary": {
+    "description": "Summary of a vote.",
+    "properties": {
+      "chamber": {
+        "description": "Chamber where vote occurred (House/Senate)",
+        "title": "Chamber",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "date": {
+        "description": "Date of the vote",
+        "title": "Date",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "description": {
+        "description": "Description of what was voted on",
+        "title": "Description",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "result": {
+        "description": "Vote result (Passed, Failed, etc.)",
+        "title": "Result",
+        "type": "string"
+      },
+      "url": {
+        "anyOf": [
+          {
+            "type": "string"
+          },
+          {
+            "type": "null"
+          }
+        ],
+        "description": "Congress.gov URL for vote details",
+        "title": "Url"
+      },
+      "vote_counts": {
+        "additionalProperties": {
+          "type": "integer"
+        },
+        "description": "Vote breakdown (Yea, Nay, Present, Not Voting)",
+        "title": "Vote Counts",
+        "type": "object"
+      },
+      "vote_number": {
+        "description": "Vote number",
+        "title": "Vote Number",
+        "type": "integer"
+      }
+    },
+    "required": [
+      "vote_number",
+      "chamber",
+      "date",
+      "description",
+      "result",
+      "vote_counts",
+      "url"
+    ],
+    "title": "VoteSummary",
+    "type": "object"
+  }
+}

addedOutput schema / description

Added value: +"Response from the voting and nominations tool."

addedOutput schema / properties / nominations

Added value: +{
+  "default": [],
+  "description": "Nomination results",
+  "items": {
+    "$ref": "#/$defs/NominationSummary"
+  },
+  "title": "Nominations",
+  "type": "array"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / operation

Added value: +{
+  "description": "The operation that was performed",
+  "title": "Operation",
+  "type": "string"
+}

removedOutput schema / properties / result

Removed value: -{
-  "title": "Result",
-  "type": "string"
-}

addedOutput schema / properties / results_count

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Number of results returned",
+  "title": "Results Count",
+  "type": "integer"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / success

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Whether the operation was successful",
+  "title": "Success",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / summary

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Human-readable summary of the results",
+  "title": "Summary",
+  "type": "string"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / votes

Added value: +{
+  "default": [],
+  "description": "Vote results",
+  "items": {
+    "$ref": "#/$defs/VoteSummary"
+  },
+  "title": "Votes",
+  "type": "array"
+}

changedOutput schema / required

Previous value: -[
-  "result"
-]New value: +[
+  "success",
+  "operation",
+  "results_count",
+  "summary"
+]

changedOutput schema / title

Previous value: -"voting_and_nominationsOutput"New value: +"VotingNominationsResponse"

First observedv2.0.0Apr 3, 2026

TDQS

A4.2/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

With no annotations, the description carries the full burden of behavioral disclosure. It warns that the schema marks all parameters optional but operations actually fail without required values, and it explains that operations return structured vote/nomination data. This is valuable beyond the schema, though it does not cover error conditions or pagination.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

The description is long but well-structured with sections, bullet lists, and bolded categories. Every section earns its place, and the critical warning about optional-looking required parameters is prominent. The format makes the 13 operations and their parameter requirements easy to scan.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

For a tool with 11 parameters and no annotations, the description provides enough operational context to select an operation and know which parameters are required. The output schema exists, so return-value details do not need to be described. Minor gaps remain around exact parameter formats and operation string values, but overall this is a complete enough definition.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters3/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 0%, so the description must compensate. It lists key parameters and maps required parameter combinations to operations, which is genuinely helpful. However, it leaves several parameters (sort, limit, from_date, to_date, keywords) without any semantic detail beyond their names.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description explicitly states the tool provides access to House votes and presidential nominations, then enumerates all 13 operations by category. This clearly distinguishes it from sibling tools focused on bills, members, committees, and treaties.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines4/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

The description gives clear context for when to use the tool ('Access House votes and presidential nominations') and provides operation-specific required parameter mappings. It does not explicitly name when to prefer a sibling tool over this one, but the scope is well-defined and the operation breakdown is practical.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.