Jonah Patel
The United States Constitution has been amended 27 times since it was enacted in 1789. Amendments must be proposed and ratified before becoming operative. The 20th-century amendments to the Constitution include the 16th through the 22nd Amendments, which cover a range of topics such as income tax, the election of Senators, and the terms of the President and Vice President. These amendments were proposed and ratified between 1909 and 1920, with the 19th Amendment being ratified by the requisite number of states in 1919.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Amendments to the Constitution | 27 |
| First 10 Amendments | Known as the Bill of Rights |
| Amendments 11-27 | Listed on the National Archives website |
| 20th Amendment | Terms of President, Vice President, Senators and Representatives end at noon on January 20th and the terms of their successors shall begin |
| 16th Amendment | Congress has the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes |
| 17th Amendment | The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people |
| 18th Amendment | Proposed by Congress on December 18, 1917 |
| 19th Amendment | Ratified by several state legislatures on various dates in 1919 and 1920 |
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What You'll Learn
The process of amending the Constitution
The process of amending the US Constitution is outlined in Article Five of the US Constitution. This two-step process was designed to balance the need for change with the need for stability.
An amendment can be proposed and sent for ratification in two ways. Firstly, by a two-thirds majority vote in both the Senate and the House of Representatives of the US Congress. Secondly, by a national convention called by Congress on the application of two-thirds of state legislatures (34 states since 1959). However, this second option has never been used.
For an amendment to become part of the Constitution, it must be ratified. There are two ways to do this. The first is by gaining approval from the legislatures of three-fourths of the states (38 states since 1959). The second is by gaining approval from three-fourths of the states at ratifying conventions. Only the 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition, was ratified this way.
The first ten amendments to the Constitution, known as The Bill of Rights, were ratified simultaneously. Amendments 11-27 were added separately, with the most recent being added in 1978. The 16th, 17th, and 18th Amendments, which cover income tax, the election of senators, and the prohibition of alcohol, respectively, were all added in the early 20th century.
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The Twenty-first Amendment repeals the Eighteenth Amendment
The Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified on January 16, 1919, after years of advocacy by the temperance movement. The amendment ushered in a period known as Prohibition, during which the manufacture, distribution, and sale of alcoholic beverages were made illegal.
However, Prohibition proved to be highly unpopular. As many Americans continued to drink despite the amendment, a profitable black market for alcohol emerged, fueling the rise of organised crime. By the 1930s, public sentiment towards Prohibition had flipped from positive to negative, and a political movement for its repeal grew.
On February 20, 1933, Congress proposed a new amendment to end Prohibition. The Twenty-first Amendment was ratified on December 5, 1933, and it expressly repealed the Eighteenth Amendment. It is unique among the 27 amendments of the U.S. Constitution for being the only one to repeal a prior amendment.
Section 2 of the Twenty-first Amendment bans the importation of alcohol into states and territories that have laws prohibiting the importation or consumption of alcohol. Several states continued to be "dry states" in the years after the repealing of the Eighteenth Amendment, and some still closely regulate the distribution of alcohol today.
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The Seventeenth Amendment and state ratification
The Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution established the direct election of United States Senators by popular vote. Before the ratification of this amendment, Senators were elected by state legislatures. The push for this amendment was part of a broader reform movement at the turn of the twentieth century, which sought to increase democracy and reduce corruption in the election process.
The text of the amendment states:
> "The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures."
The process of achieving ratification for this amendment was a lengthy one. It began with a proposal in Congress, which required a two-thirds majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Once passed by Congress, the amendment was then sent to the states for ratification, as outlined in Article V of the Constitution. For it to become valid, three-fourths of the states needed to approve it, either through their legislatures or special ratification conventions.
The campaign for ratification lasted several years and faced opposition from those who wished to maintain the status quo. Supporters of direct election argued that it would reduce political corruption and increase democratic representation, while opponents argued that it would upset the balance of power between the states and the federal government, and diminish the influence of the states in the Senate.
Eventually, on April 8, 1913, the necessary three-fourths majority of states was achieved when the Connecticut General Assembly ratified the amendment, becoming the 36th state to do so. The amendment significantly altered the representation of states in the federal government and marked a shift towards a more democratic process in American politics.
The Seventeenth Amendment had a profound impact on the relationship between the states and the federal government. By transferring the power to elect senators from state legislatures to the people, it weakened the states' direct influence in the Senate and strengthened the principle of popular sovereignty. This amendment also contributed to the expansion of federal power relative to the states, as it provided a more direct link between the federal government and the people.
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The Twelfth Amendment and the Electoral College
The Twelfth Amendment (Amendment XII) to the United States Constitution outlines the procedure for electing the president and vice president. It was proposed by Congress on December 9, 1803, and ratified by three-quarters of state legislatures on June 15, 1804. The amendment came into effect for the 1804 presidential election and has governed all subsequent elections.
The Twelfth Amendment was a response to the 1800 election, which exposed serious deficiencies in the original Electoral College system. Under the original rules, electors voted for two candidates without specifying who should be president and who should be vice president. In 1800, this led to a tie between the Democratic-Republican Party's presidential candidate Thomas Jefferson and their vice-presidential candidate Aaron Burr, forcing the House of Representatives to choose between them.
The Twelfth Amendment changed this process by requiring electors to cast distinct votes for president and vice president. It also stipulated that one of the candidates must reside in a state other than that of the elector. This prevented electors from voting for two candidates from their own state.
The amendment also addressed the procedure for contingent elections in Congress in the event of a tie vote. It changed the rule so that the House of Representatives would choose the president from the top three vote-getters, rather than the top five. The Senate would break a tie for vice president between the top two vote-getters.
The Twelfth Amendment has been effective in eliminating most ties and deadlocks in presidential elections. However, it has also been the subject of debate, with some arguing for a popular election as a simpler and more accommodating alternative.
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The Thirteenth Amendment and the end of slavery
The Thirteenth Amendment, passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified on December 6, 1865, abolished slavery and put an end to the unjust system of chattel slavery in the United States. It was the first of the three Reconstruction Amendments adopted following the American Civil War. The Amendment states:
> "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."
The road to the abolition of slavery was a long and arduous one. In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that all persons held as slaves within any state in rebellion against the United States were to be forever free. However, this proclamation did not end slavery nationwide, as it only applied to areas of the Confederacy in rebellion and not to the loyal "border states" that remained in the Union. Lincoln recognised that a constitutional amendment was necessary to truly abolish slavery.
The Thirteenth Amendment not only abolished slavery but also restricted other forms of bound labour and servitude. Indentured servitude and peonage, the latter being more common in the postwar South, were also deemed illegal. The Amendment's enforcement clause in Section Two has been utilised to combat racial discrimination in various sectors, including private transportation, housing, and, more recently, human trafficking.
The Thirteenth Amendment, along with the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, greatly expanded the civil rights of Americans and provided a final constitutional solution to the issue of slavery. These trio of Civil War amendments ensured that the United States could move forward as a nation free from the shackles of slavery and with a stronger foundation of equality and freedom.
The Unused Method to Amend the Constitution
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Frequently asked questions
Thirty-three amendments to the Constitution of the United States have been proposed by the United States Congress.
Twenty-seven amendments are part of the Constitution. Four are still pending, one failed by its own terms, and one failed by the terms of the resolution proposing it.
An amendment may be proposed by the U.S. Congress, whenever a two-thirds majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives deem it necessary. To become part of the Constitution, an amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of the states within seven years from the date of its submission to the states.
