Lifers with a twist: like the Energizer Bunny, some dedicated legislators just want to keep serving.

• Author: Kaufman, Mindy
• Position: Paul Dennert

When asked if his move from the Senate to the House feels like a step down, South Dakota Representative Paul Dennert quipped, "Actually, the House here is physically two steps higher than the Senate."

Representative Dennert's cheerful disposition in the wake of a shift "downward" mirrors the attitudes of a small but resolute group of politicians who choose the "lower chamber" over no office. Some say they even prefer it.

Term limits are pushing committed legislators in several states to look next door when their time is up. In a four-year national study by NCSL, the Council of State Governments and the State Legislative Leaders Foundation, 52 percent of legislators in states with term limits indicated that they would consider a run for the Senate when their House term ends. And 13 percent of the senators surveyed said they will take that rare move and run for the House (compared to only 1 percent in states without term limits).

No one knows exactly how many state senators have made the switch to the House, but Gary Moncrief, professor of political science at Boise State University, says it's going to become more common because many termed-out legislators want to stay in office. "These are people who enjoy politics and public service. For them, it doesn't matter where they're doing it."

A NEW DIRECTION

Oregon Representative John Lim, a Korean immigrant who earned his citizenship in 1976, feels that it's the American dream to be elected to public service, a privilege he wouldn't "trade for anything else in the world." That's why he ran for the Oregon House when he termed out of his Senate seat.

Even now, after the Oregon Supreme Court ruled its term limits unconstitutional, Representative Lim is happy with his House seat. "I'm lucky enough to be in the majority now, which is definitely more fun," says Lim, who's running for another term this fall. "And I have half the territory that I had as a senator and more friends in the House."

South Dakota Representative Gerald Lange shares Lim's fascination with and appreciation for politics, as well as his commitment to public service. When term limits ousted him from his Senate seat in 2000, he similarly opted for a House run.

Far from a downgrade, Lange found an even bigger soapbox in the House with twice as many listeners as the one he stood on in the Senate. "It's more exciting because there are more minds at work and more debate," he says. "I've actually had my best year in office this last...