Interesting statistic

[orichalcum]

So, I was looking at info for the lecture I'm giving on the fall of the Roman Republic next week, where the lecturer wanted to emphasize that the top ten political families in the last 100 years or so of the Roman Republic held more than half the consulships (the top office).

I was curious and decided to check modern American figures.

http://www.allacademic.com//meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/3/1/7/1/2/pages317122/p317122-12.php

From the 2006 election:
Modern U.S. Comparison:
2006 election: 12% of major candidates and 18% of winners came from “political families,” where political families are defined as those that have 2 or more members related by blood or marriage within 2 generations who have been candidates for congressional, gubernatorial, or large-city mayoral offices.

Breaking down by office,
32% of Senators, 17% of Reps, 19% of Governors who won in 2006 came from political families.

Makes Obama look like even more of an outlier...