The Twelfth Amendment to the US Constitution was passed by Congress on December 9, 1803 . Ratified by the required number of states on June 15, 1804 . This amendment establishes the election process for the President of the United States and Vice President of the United States . This amendment replaced paragraph 3 of paragraph 1 of Article 2 of the Constitution, which had previously regulated the electoral work procedure. The amendment was adopted in connection with the problems that arose in the 1800 elections .
Content
- 1 Text
- 2 Elections before the adoption of the amendment
- 3 Elections as per 12 amendment
- 4 Elections after 1804
- 5 notes
- 6 References
Text
| Electors gather in their states and vote with ballots for the President and Vice President, of which at least one should not be a resident of the same state; in their ballot papers they indicate the person for whom they vote as President, and in separate ballots the person for whom they vote as Vice President; they also compose separate lists of all the persons for whom they voted for the President, and all the persons for whom they voted for the Vice-President, indicating the number of votes cast for each of them; they sign, certify, and forward these lists sealed to the seat of government of the United States in the name of the chairman of the Senate. The chairman of the Senate, in the presence of the Senate and the House of Representatives, opens all sealed lists, after which the votes are counted. The person who receives the largest number of votes cast for the President shall become the President, if such a number constitutes the majority of the number of votes of all appointed electors; if no person receives such a majority of votes, then of the persons (not more than three of those who voted as President) who have the largest number of votes, the House of Representatives shall immediately elect the President by voting with ballots. But in Presidential elections, votes are cast by state, with representation from each state having one vote; in this case, a quorum is made up of members of the House of Representatives from two-thirds of the states; however, the election of the President requires a majority of the votes of all states. If the House of Representatives, when the right of choice passes to it, does not elect the President until the fourth day of next March, then the Vice President will act as President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional failure of the President [1] The person who receives the largest number of votes for the vice president becomes the vice president, if that number constitutes the majority of the votes of all nominated electors; if not a single person receives the majority of the votes, then from the two persons who received the largest number of votes among all the candidates on the list, the Senate elects the Vice President; in this case, two-thirds of all senators constitute a quorum, and the majority of votes of all senators is required to elect a vice president. But not a single person who is not eligible for election as President by constitutional requirements is eligible for election as Vice President of the United States. [2] [3] |
Elections Pending Amendment
According to the original presidential election process, each state elected a specific number of electors . Each elector had two votes, while the elector could not cast both of these votes to people living with him in the same state. This restriction was introduced to exclude the possibility that electors will vote only for representatives of their state. The person who received the majority of votes became the President, and the runner-up became the Vice President.
If the same person received the same, and at the same time, majority of votes, the US House of Representatives could elect one of them as President. If no one got the most votes, the House of Representatives could choose one of the five candidates with the most votes. The president was the one who scored the most votes in the House of Representatives.
The vice-president was elected more simply: he became the runner-up in the election of voters. However, he was not obliged to receive an absolute majority of votes. In the event of a tie, the vice president was elected by the Senate, with each senator having one vote. The constitution did not specify whether the current vice president could vote in such elections in the event of a tie.
In the 1796 election, John Adams ( Federalist Party ) gained the most votes. However, federal electors “cast off” their votes for the vice president. As a result, he became Thomas Jefferson , a candidate for the Democratic Republican Party .
The 1800 election revealed all the flaws of the old electoral system. In the event that all electors have followed the party mandate, two candidates will always have to receive the same and largest number of votes. In the same election, the House of Representatives held many rounds of voting to elect the President.
In addition, it became obvious that if the president and vice president are representatives of different parties, they will not be able to cooperate effectively. This can lead to a conspiracy and coup on the part of the vice president, who can take the president’s place in the event of the death or resignation of the latter.
Elections 12 amendment
The Twelfth Amendment seriously changed the electoral process, but did not change the procedure for their election. It was first applied in 1804 . According to this amendment, each elector votes for the president and vice president on separate ballots. At the same time, the rule prohibiting voting for two candidates from the same state with the elector is preserved.
In addition, the amendment clearly deprives the person who is not suitable for the presidency of the opportunity to take the post of vice president. However, the question of whether the person who was the President of the United States for two terms (the deadline set by the twenty-second amendment ) to take the position of vice president remains open.
To be elected President or Vice President, an individual must receive the support of an absolute majority of electors. If none of the candidates receives such a majority, the right of choice passes to the House of Representatives, which, in turn, votes by the states. The quorum for such elections is 2/3 of the states. You can only choose between the three candidates with the most votes.
The Senate has the right to elect a vice president in the event that not a single candidate has received an absolute majority of the electoral vote. Moreover, the choice is made among the two candidates with the largest number of votes. If several applicants receive the same number of votes, they are also included in the ballot. The quorum for such elections is 2/3 of the senators, and the decision is taken by an absolute majority.
In order to prevent anyone depriving the nation of a leader, the Twelfth Amendment determines that if the House of Representatives fails to elect a president before March 4 (the day the new President assumes office), the person elected as vice president should take up his duties. However, it is not clear whether the House of Representatives can elect a President after March 4. The Twentieth Amendment replaced this part of the Twelfth Amendment, setting the term for the new President to begin on January 20. At the same time, it was clarified that the Vice President only acts as President if he is not elected. At the same time, Congress received the right to determine who will act as President if neither the President nor the Vice President is elected.
Elections after 1804
All elections, starting from 1804, are held in accordance with the twelfth amendment. The House of Representatives elected the President only once, when in 1825 Andrew Jackson scored 99 electoral votes with 131 necessary. Jackson believed that the House would elect him, as he had the greatest voter support. However, in the very first round of voting, John Adams won with 13 state votes against 7 Jackson votes and 3 William Craifford votes. The vice president was elected by electors - John Calhoun scored 182 votes.
In the 1836 election, the Whig party put forward several candidates in an attempt to split the Democrats' votes and transfer the elections to parliament controlled by them. However, their strategy failed and Van Buren won the election. At the same time, his partner Richard Johnson did not get the required number of votes because the Virginia electors voted against him because of his relationship with the former slave (as a result, Johnson did not have one vote), however, the Senate elected him vice the president.
Although the main parties did not try to use the strategy of transferring the elections to parliament in the future, some small parties nominated “regional” candidates in the elections of 1948 and 1968. Their strategies failed, but if these candidates received the votes of the electors of their states, the voting results would have changed significantly.
In 2000, a problem arose with George W. Bush. and Dick Cheney were both residents of Texas, which deprived state electors of the right to vote for both of them. Cheney was forced to move to Wyoming, sell his house in Texas and change his driver's license. However, three voters tried to appeal the election results, arguing that Texas votes could not be counted. The claim was denied. [four]
Notes
- ↑ Last sentence amended by the Twentieth Amendment
- ↑ Constitution of the United States: Amendments 11-27 . National Archives . Date of treatment February 9, 2008. Archived March 22, 2012.
- ↑ nNMYARKHRSZHH yayu
- ↑ Obscure Texas Case Offers Peek Into Role Of Court Nominee , The Wall Street Journal, Oct. 7, 2005.