Eleanor Finch
The Constitution of the United States has been amended 27 times, with 33 amendments proposed by the US Congress. Amendments are proposed and sent to states for ratification by the US Congress, with a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by three-quarters of the states. The last time an amendment proposal gained the necessary two-thirds support in both the House and the Senate was in 1978. There were no amendments to the US Constitution created in the 1960s. However, the 23rd Amendment, which was passed by Congress on June 16, 1960, and ratified on March 29, 1961, allowed the District constituting the seat of the US government to appoint electors of the President and Vice President.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date proposed | June 16, 1960 |
| Date ratified | March 29, 1961 |
| Name | Twenty-fourth Amendment |
| Description | The Twenty-fourth Amendment abolished and forbids federal and state governments from imposing taxes on voters during federal elections. |
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What You'll Learn
The 23rd Amendment (1961)
The 23rd Amendment to the US Constitution, proposed by Congress on June 16, 1960, and ratified on March 29, 1961, granted citizens of Washington, D.C., the right to vote in presidential elections. Washington, D.C., is a federal district, and its residents are not considered citizens of a state. Despite paying federal taxes and being subject to the same military obligations as state citizens, residents of the US capital historically had no say in electing federal public officials.
The 23rd Amendment established a vote for District of Columbia residents in presidential elections, allocating to Washington electoral votes equal to the number of the least-populated state (three). This amendment ensured that residents of the nation's capital could participate in the democratic process and have their voices heard in choosing the country's president and vice president.
The text of the amendment states:
> "A number of electors of President and Vice President equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives in Congress to which the District would be entitled if it were a State, but in no event more than the least populous State; they shall be in addition to those appointed by the States, but they shall be considered, for the purposes of the election of President and Vice President, to be electors appointed by a State; and they shall meet in the District and perform such duties as provided by the twelfth article of amendment. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."
It is important to note that even after the 23rd Amendment, residents of Washington, D.C., remained unrepresented in the US Congress. However, in 1970, Congress established a non-voting elected delegate to the House of Representatives. Additionally, in 1978, Congress approved an amendment that would have repealed the 23rd Amendment and granted District residents full rights, but it failed to be ratified by the required number of states.
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The District of Columbia
The amendment gives the district electors in the Electoral College, as though it were a state, although the district can never have more electors than the least populous state. The District of Columbia has consistently had three members in the Electoral College, the constitutionally implied minimum number it is entitled to. The Twenty-third Amendment was significant for reflecting the increasing influence of public advocacy amid the backdrop of 20th-century America.
The issue of voting rights for the district became associated with the civil rights movement. As early as 1888, some journalists and members of Congress supported a constitutional amendment to grant the district voting rights. In the 1950s, the district's potential voting impact was fairly balanced between Democrats and Republicans, making it easier to gain bipartisan support for increased voting powers.
In the decades following the Twenty-third Amendment, the district gained more political autonomy through the Council of the District of Columbia, the governing body in charge of the federal district under the executive rule of Congress. The district's voters have since shifted from relatively balanced to predominantly Democratic. A movement calling for the district to be accepted as a state has emerged in recent years, with supporters arguing that the Twenty-third Amendment and the 1973 Home Rule Act were precedents for granting the district electoral power.
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Voting rights
In the 1960s, the struggle for equal voting rights intensified as many states, particularly in the South, continued to erect barriers aimed at suppressing the vote among racial minorities, new citizens, and low-income populations. Literacy tests, poll taxes, and English-language requirements were among the tools used to disenfranchise these groups.
In response to these widespread voting rights violations, Congress passed the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965. This federal statute was designed to enforce the voting rights protected by the Fifteenth Amendment and prohibit racial discrimination in voting. It prescribed remedies for voting discrimination, such as requiring certain jurisdictions to obtain federal approval before implementing new voting practices and procedures. The Act also placed limits on states with a history of voter discrimination and required election materials to be provided in languages other than English.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights movement. It represented a significant shift in power dynamics, empowering racial minorities throughout the country, especially in the South, to exercise their constitutional right to vote. The Act has been amended multiple times since its enactment to further strengthen its protections.
In addition to the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the 24th Amendment, ratified in 1964, eliminated poll taxes that had been used to disenfranchise African Americans and low-income individuals. These legislative actions in the 1960s played a crucial role in expanding voting rights and dismantling discriminatory voting practices in the United States.
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The 15th Amendment
The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments are collectively known as the Reconstruction Amendments. The 15th Amendment, passed on February 26, 1869, and ratified on February 3, 1870, granted African American men the right to vote. The amendment reads: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."
However, it is important to note that the impact of the 15th Amendment was limited by discriminatory practices and laws in many Southern states. African Americans faced barriers such as poll taxes, literary tests, and intimidation by groups like the Ku Klux Klan, which prevented them from fully exercising their constitutional rights. In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson urged Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act, which abolished all remaining deterrents to exercising the right to vote and authorized federal supervision of voter registration where necessary.
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Women's suffrage
In the United States, the 19th Amendment, ratified in 1920, granted women the right to vote. However, this did not immediately translate into voting access for all women. For example, unnaturalized immigrant women, who numbered over a million in 1950, were unable to vote. White primaries, "literacy tests," and threats of violence prevented many southern Black women from casting ballots. Poll taxes also impeded voting access for poor women.
It wasn't until the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 that voting rights were more fully realized for women and racial minorities in the United States. This legislation established federal oversight of elections and provided stronger protections for voters, leading to increased participation among African Americans and the election of African American candidates to local and state offices.
In other parts of the world, women's suffrage continued to be a work in progress in the 1960s. In Switzerland, women gained the right to vote at the federal level in 1971, and between 1959 and 1990 at the local canton level. In Liechtenstein, women's suffrage was introduced in 1984, and in Bhutan, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait, women recently gained the right to participate in national elections.
The expansion of voting rights to women often occurred in conjunction with broader social and political shifts. For instance, during the period of European decolonization in the 1950s and 1960s, many newly independent nations adopted universal suffrage alongside new governments and constitutions.
While the 1960s saw significant progress towards women's suffrage globally, the fight for equal voting rights continued well into the latter part of the century and beyond, with countries like Saudi Arabia only granting limited voting rights to women in the 21st century.
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Frequently asked questions
One—the 23rd Amendment, passed by Congress on June 16, 1960, and ratified on March 29, 1961.
The 23rd Amendment states that the district constituting the seat of the US government shall appoint electors of the President and Vice President.
Amendments can be proposed and sent for ratification by either a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives or a national convention called by Congress on the application of two-thirds of state legislatures. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states.
There have been 27 amendments to the Constitution, with 33 proposed by Congress and sent to the states for ratification.
