Omar Bennett
The 12th Amendment to the US Constitution was proposed by the 8th Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified on June 15, 1804. It outlines the procedure for electing the President and Vice President, requiring each elector to cast one vote for the President and another for the Vice President. The amendment also specifies how the President and Vice President are to be selected if neither candidate obtains a majority vote.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date proposed | December 9, 1803 |
| Date ratified | June 15, 1804 |
| Date added to Constitution | September 25, 1804 |
| Purpose | To revise and outline the procedure of how Presidents and Vice Presidents are elected |
| Key changes | Each elector must cast one vote for president and one vote for vice president; no individual constitutionally ineligible to be president can be vice president; the House of Representatives chooses the president from the top three candidates if no candidate has a majority vote or there is a tie; the Senate chooses the vice president from the top two candidates if there is a tie or no candidate gets a majority |
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What You'll Learn
- Electors must cast distinct votes for President and Vice President
- Eligibility requirements for President now apply to Vice President
- The House of Representatives chooses the President if there is no majority
- The Senate chooses the Vice President if there is no majority
- The Vice President acts as President if the House does not choose a President by March 4
Electors must cast distinct votes for President and Vice President
The Twelfth Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified on June 15, 1804, outlines the procedure for the election of the President and Vice President. It was proposed by the 8th Congress on December 9, 1803, and submitted to the 17 states on December 12, 1803. The amendment was ratified by 14 of the 17 states by September 25, 1804.
The Twelfth Amendment was proposed to address issues with the original election procedure, which allowed for the President and Vice President to be from different parties, leading to governance issues. The amendment also aimed to prevent ties between candidates, such as the one between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr in 1800.
The Twelfth Amendment requires electors to cast distinct votes for President and Vice President. This means that each elector must cast one vote for President and one vote for Vice President, with one of the selected candidates not being from the same state as the elector. This change ensures that the President and Vice President are elected together as a team, representing the same party and political views.
The amendment also outlines the process if no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes. In such cases, the House of Representatives selects the President from the top three candidates, and the Senate chooses the Vice President from the top two candidates. This process guarantees that there will always be a Vice President, who can assume the responsibilities of the President if needed.
The Twelfth Amendment has been successful in preventing ties and deadlocks in most elections since its ratification. It has provided a framework for resolving unorthodox voting patterns and results, contributing to the stability of the electoral process in the United States.
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Eligibility requirements for President now apply to Vice President
The Twelfth Amendment to the US Constitution was proposed by the Eighth Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified on June 15, 1804. It outlines the procedure for how the President and Vice President are elected, specifically so that they are elected together. The Amendment was proposed to address the flaws in the original system, which had resulted in a prolonged contingent election in 1800.
The Twelfth Amendment stipulates that electors must cast distinct votes for President and Vice President. It also states that one of the candidates must not be an inhabitant of the same state as the elector. This is to ensure that the President and Vice President are not from the same state.
The Amendment also addresses the situation where no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes. In this case, the House of Representatives selects the President from the top three candidates, and the Senate chooses the Vice President from the top two candidates. This is a change from the original provision, which allowed the House to choose from the top five candidates.
One of the key aspects of the Twelfth Amendment is that it extends the eligibility requirements for President to the Vice President. This means that no person who is constitutionally ineligible to be President can be Vice President. The eligibility requirements for President include being a natural-born citizen, being at least thirty-five years old, and having been a resident of the United States for fourteen years.
The Twelfth Amendment was successful in eliminating most ties and deadlocks in subsequent elections. It also recognised the existence of political parties and allowed each party to nominate their team for President and Vice President.
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The House of Representatives chooses the President if there is no majority
The Twelfth Amendment to the US Constitution was proposed by the Eighth Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified on June 15, 1804. It outlines the procedure for electing the President and Vice President, specifically so that they are elected together. The Amendment was proposed to prevent a repeat of the 1800 election, where Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, both running for the Democratic-Republican ticket, tied in the Electoral College.
The Twelfth Amendment states that if no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes, a contingent election is held by the House of Representatives to choose the President. The House selects the President from the top three candidates with the most electoral votes. Importantly, the vote within the House is taken by state, with each state delegation having one vote, rather than by the number of representatives. This gives smaller states a greater say in the election.
The Twelfth Amendment also changed the original procedure, which allowed the House to choose from the top five candidates. This change was proposed by Democratic-Republican John Clopton, who argued that having five names on the list took power away from the people. The Amendment also stipulates that if the House fails to choose a President by March 4, the Vice President will act as President until a decision is made.
The House of Representatives has only chosen the President once, in 1824, when Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, and William Crawford were the top three candidates. Under the original Constitution, the House could have chosen from all the candidates, including Henry Clay, who came in fourth. However, the Twelfth Amendment's requirement to choose from the top three candidates meant Clay was out of the running, and the House selected Adams as President.
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The Senate chooses the Vice President if there is no majority
The Twelfth Amendment to the US Constitution was proposed by the 8th Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified by the states on June 15, 1804. It outlines the procedure for how the President and Vice President are elected, specifically so that they are elected together.
The Twelfth Amendment was proposed to address issues with the original election process, which saw the President and Vice-President elected from the same ticket, but not necessarily from the same party. This caused issues when the President and Vice-President had differing political views, making governance more difficult.
The Twelfth Amendment requires that electors cast two votes, one for President and one for Vice-President. The Amendment also requires that one of the two candidates must not be an inhabitant of the same state as the elector. This was to prevent the President and Vice-President from being from the same state.
The Twelfth Amendment also outlines the procedure for selecting the President and Vice-President if no candidate receives a majority of votes. If no candidate receives a majority of votes, the House of Representatives selects the President from the top three candidates, and the Senate chooses the Vice-President from the top two candidates. A quorum for the Senate to choose the Vice-President consists of two-thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number is necessary for a choice.
The Twelfth Amendment also extends eligibility requirements for the Vice-President, stating that no person who is constitutionally ineligible to be President can be Vice-President. This includes the requirements that the candidate must be a natural-born citizen, at least 35 years old, and have been a resident of the United States for 14 years.
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The Vice President acts as President if the House does not choose a President by March 4
The Twelfth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was proposed by the 8th Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified on June 15, 1804. It outlines the procedure for electing the President and Vice President, specifically so that they are elected together.
The Twelfth Amendment was proposed to address issues that arose in the 1796 election, where the president and vice president were from different parties, which made governance more difficult. It also aimed to prevent ties between candidates, as was the case in the 1800 election between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr.
The Amendment specifies that electors must cast one vote for the president and another for the vice president. It also states that one of the two candidates must not be an inhabitant of the same state as the elector. In the case of a tie or if no candidate receives a majority of votes, the House of Representatives chooses the president from the top three candidates, with each state having one vote.
If the House of Representatives fails to choose a president by March 4, the Vice President shall act as President until a decision is made. This provision ensures that the country has a leader during the inter-term phase.
The Twelfth Amendment has been effective in eliminating most ties and deadlocks in subsequent elections. It also extends the eligibility requirements for the presidency to the vice presidency, including the conditions that the candidate must be a natural-born citizen, at least 35 years old, and have been a resident of the United States for 14 years.
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Frequently asked questions
The 12th Amendment was proposed by the 8th Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified on June 15, 1804. It outlines the procedure for how Presidents and Vice Presidents are elected.
The 12th Amendment was proposed to prevent a situation similar to the 1800 election, where Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr, who were both from the same party, tied in the Electoral College.
The Amendment requires each member of the Electoral College to cast one electoral vote for the President and one electoral vote for the Vice President. It also extends the eligibility requirements for the President to the Vice President, meaning that no person who is constitutionally ineligible to be President can be Vice President.
If there is no majority vote for the President, the House of Representatives selects the new President from the top three candidates. If there is no majority vote for the Vice President, the Senate chooses from the top two candidates.
