Staff have been deserting Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) in high numbers and the record-low pay is probably not helping.
Rep. Cuellar's office had the lowest median salary of all House of Representatives offices in 2024 Q1, according to aggregate median salary data. Cuellar's office is the only Democratic office ranked among the five worst-paid House offices.
Cuellar has made headlines in recent months for a DOJ indictment that charges him with accepting approximately $600,000 in bribes from foreign entities, which has been followed by a wave of staff resignations, including by his longtime chief of staff.
His office’s median salary - $47,480 - is nearly 60% less than the best-paid office's median salary, claimed by Rep. Paul Gosar’s (R-Ariz.) office, and 31% less than the aggregate median salary for House offices - $70,174.
House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.) office also ranks among the worst-paid, with a median salary of $52,512. Notably, one of Johnson's predecessors, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), has an office that ranks in the top five best-paid house offices, with a median salary that is nearly 50% higher than that of Johnson's office.
The majority of the five worst-paid offices are Republican, with Rep. Barry Loudermilk's (R-Ga.), Rep. Andy Harris' (R-Md.) and Rep. Greg Pence's (R-Ind.) offices also ranking in the bottom five. The best-paid House offices are more mixed, with the offices of Gosar, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) and Pelosi claiming the top five spots.
