Most civics questions have the same answer for everyone. Four do not, and USCIS marks them “Answers will vary”: the name of one of your state’s U.S. senators, the name of your U.S. representative, the name of your governor, and the capital of your state. You answer for the state where you live, with the people in office on the day of your interview.
Where to find the names
- Senators: senate.gov lists all 100 by state. Every state has two.
- Representative: house.gov finds yours by ZIP code. Each congressional district elects one member of the House.
- Governor: usa.gov has a page for every state with the governor’s name.
- Capital: the city where the state legislature and the governor work. It is often not the largest city, as with Sacramento in California or Albany in New York.
Washington, D.C. and the territories
USCIS gives the accepted answers for residents of places that are not states. Residents of the District of Columbia answer that D.C. has no U.S. senators, that D.C. does not have a governor, and that D.C. is not a state and does not have a capital. Residents of Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands answer that their territory has no U.S. senators, name the governor of the territory and its capital, and for the representative may name their nonvoting delegate or resident commissioner.
How the practice here handles it
Pick your state at the top of the test page, and the four questions fill in with its names from usa.gov and senate.gov, checked on the date shown on the page. For D.C. and the territories the practice uses the USCIS wording above. Names change after elections, so check the three sites once more in the week before your interview.
Practice with your state’s names