Openreview vs Legiscan MCP
A side-by-side look at the Openreview and Legiscan MCP MCP servers: transport, auth, tools, quality signals, and the config to install either one in Claude, Cursor, Windsurf or VS Code.
Verdict: choose Openreview for research work as a local process; choose Legiscan MCP for research as a local process. You can also run both side by side in one mcpServers block.
Which MCP server should you choose?
Choose Openreview when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
Choose Legiscan MCP when
- You need dedicated capabilities in the Research domain.
- You prefer a local stdio subprocess transport.
- Its auth model fits you: API key required.
- You have the keys it needs:
LEGISCAN_API_KEY. - You want tools like
legiscan_find_legislator, legiscan_get_legislator_votes, legiscan_get_primary_authored.
Feature & specification comparison
Rows where the two servers differ are marked.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | Research | Research |
| Quality signal | 41/100 · Fair | 63/100 · Good |
| Install command | Confirmed | Confirmed |
| Transport | Local subprocess (stdio) | Local subprocess (stdio) |
| Auth | Not declared | API key required |
| Pricing | Not declared | Free |
| Required env vars | None listed |
Tools & capabilities
Openreview tools
No tool names declared yet. Check the project README from the listing page.
Legiscan MCP tools 10
legiscan_find_legislatorFind a legislator's people_id by name. Supports partial matching.legiscan_get_legislator_votesGet how a legislator voted on multiple bills in one call.legiscan_get_primary_authoredGet only bills where legislator is primary author (not co-sponsor).legiscan_get_billGet detailed bill info (sponsors, history, votes, texts)legiscan_find_bill_by_numberFind bill by number (handles AB 858, AB858, AB-858, A.B. 858). Best for exact bill lookup.legiscan_get_roll_callGet vote details with individual legislator voteslegiscan_get_personGet legislator info with third-party IDs (VoteSmart, OpenSecrets, etc.)legiscan_get_session_peopleGet all legislators active in a sessionlegiscan_searchFull-text search across legislation. Accepts bill-number variants like AB858, but use `legiscan_find_bill_by_number` for exact matches.legiscan_get_session_listList available legislative sessions by state
Ready-to-paste client configs
Paste either block (or both) into your client config, e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json. We only show a config when the install command is confirmed.
Openreview
{
"mcpServers": {
"openreview": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"@pipeworx/mcp-openreview"
]
}
}
}
Legiscan MCP
{
"mcpServers": {
"sh-patterson-legiscan-mcp": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"-y",
"legiscan-mcp-server"
],
"env": {
"LEGISCAN_API_KEY": "YOUR_LEGISCAN_API_KEY_HERE"
}
}
}
}
Frequently asked questions
Openreview is categorized under Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Legiscan MCP belongs to Research and uses a local stdio subprocess. Pick Openreview for research work and Legiscan MCP for research.
Copy the mcpServers block from the config section on this page into your client's config (for example claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json), then fully restart the client.
Openreview has no declared pricing — check the project's own site. Legiscan MCP is listed as free. Auth: api key required. If a server needs environment variables such as API keys, define them under the env key in your client's MCP config.
Yes. MCP clients support multiple servers: add openreview and sh-patterson-legiscan-mcp as separate keys in the same mcpServers object, and your assistant will call tools from either one.
On AllMCPs, Openreview has a quality signal of 41/100 (Fair) with 1 views, 0 installs and 0 GitHub stars. Legiscan MCP has 63/100 (Good) with 4 views, 0 installs and 11 GitHub stars.