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Constitutional Amendments 12th, 20th, 22nd, 23rd and 25th: The Presidential Amendments
The first constitutional amendment to be passed influencing the American presidency was the 12th Amendment. Ratified by the states
in 1804, this amendment redesigned the system by which presidents and vice presidents were elected through the Electoral College.
The amendment required that the states’ electors cast separate ballots for presidential and vice presidential candidates. Several years
earlier, in 1800, several flaws of the original Constitution were exposed. The first major flaw was that under the original Electoral
College, each elector was to cast two ballots. The first ballot was to be cast for the presidential nominee, and
the second was to be cast for the vice presidential nominee.
In the Election of 1800, it was determined that Thomas Jefferson and his vice
presidential running mate, Aaron Burr, had won the election. It was generally
accepted that Jefferson would become president and Burr would become vice president.
However, there was a miscommunication when the electors came together to cast their
Burr
Jefferson
ballots for president and vice president. Once all the ballots had been cast, Jefferson
and Burr both received the same number of electoral votes, thus, creating a tie for the presidency. Ultimately,
the election would be decided by the House of Representatives and Jefferson became president and Burr
became vice president, as was intended.
A second flaw contained in the original Constitution is that the runner–up (second place candidate) in a presidential election would
become vice president. This seemed logical at the time when the Framers drafted the original Constitution, however, shortly after its
ratification differences in political philosophy began to occur and opposing political parties soon emerged. The 12th Amendment
created a system which fused presidential candidates and their vice presidential candidates together on a single ticket and instructed
electors to cast distinctly different ballots for presidential and vice presidential candidates.
1.) In the original Electoral College system, how many ballots did each electoral cast ? _____________
2.) Who was to be elected president in the Election of 1800? ___________________ Vice president? ___________________
3.) What was the result after all the electors had been cast? ____________________________________________________
4.) Who was awarded the presidency? __________________ The vice presidency? __________________
5.) Prior to the 12th Amendment, what did the runner–up of a presidential election win? __________________________________
6.) Explain how the second flaw of the Electoral College was fixed by the 12th Amendment: _______________________________
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The 20th Amendment was proposed in 1932 and ratified less than one year later, in January 1933. This revision to the
Constitution changed the date of presidential inaugurations from March 4th to January 20th. Later that year,
Franklin D. Roosevelt became the final U.S. president to be inaugurated on March 4th.
This change occurred primarily to reduce the “lame duck” period which occurs before a president leaves the White House.
This period refers to the length of time between the presidential election (early November) and the inauguration of a new
president in early March. When a president has been re-elected to another term, the “lame duck” period does not exist
because they will not be leaving office. But in times when a president is leaving office (possibly due to defeat in a
re-election attempt), a four month period would exist in which presidential inactivity or inadequate leadership may
occur. This scenario has become a reality numerous times as several presidents have been labeled “lame ducks” because
they mentally “checked out” several months before leaving office. During the lame duck period, presidents may choose not
to fully embrace their presidential duties, or, the rest of the government may refuse follow the leadership of the president
since he will be leaving office soon. When this occurs, it could threaten the overall stability of our government.
7.) On which date were presidents originally inaugurated? _______________ What new date was established? _______________
8.) Who was the last president to be inaugurated on the original date? ______________________________________________
9.) What is the “lame duck” period? _________________________________________________________________________
10.) What are two ways in which a president may be labeled as a “lame duck” prior to leaving office? _______________________
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Several years after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 22nd Amendment was passed by Congress and later ratified by
the states. In response to Roosevelt being elected president four times, it set a limit on the number of terms to which
presidents could be elected. In the original Constitution, there was no limit placed on the number of terms which presidents
could be elected to. Despite his popularity, many felt that four terms was too long for one person to serve as president and
the 22nd Amendment was passed as a result. The amendment states that no person may be elected president more than
twice, and that anyone who has been president for more than two years of someone else’s term may not be elected more
than once. As a result, the longest period which any one person may serve as president is slightly less than 10 years.
Roosevelt
Although Roosevelt was elected to four terms, he only served as president for a little more than 12 years. This is because
he died in April 1945, less than three months into his fourth term as president. FDR has remained, and will remain, the president who
has served the longest time in office. His popularity and repeated re-election victories can be attributed to the strong leadership skills
which he demonstrated throughout the Great Depression and the nation’s unwillingness to elect a new president during WWII.
11.) Under the original Constitution, how many terms could a president be elected to? ___________________
12.) How many terms was Franklin Roosevelt elected to? ___________
13.) According to the 22nd Amendment, how many terms may a president be elected to? ___________________
14.) Is it possible for a president to serve for more than eight years? Explain why or why not: _________________________________
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Washington
Monument
The 23rd Amendment addressed voting rights for residents of Washington D.C. Prior to its passage in 1961,
citizens residing in the District of Columbia were not permitted to vote in presidential elections. This
strange and ironic occurrence is a result of the original design of the Electoral College. According to the
Electoral College system, a state’s electors are equal to its total representation in Congress. The District
of Columbia is not a state, and technically, it has no “official” representation in Congress. Because D.C. Lincoln Memorial
has no official representation in Congress, it did not have electors in the Electoral College, and its citizens had no voice
in electing the president. Through the 23rd Amendment, however, this issue was resolved and D.C. was given three
electoral votes in the Electoral College and its residents may now vote in presidential elections.
15.) How many electors did the District of Columbia have in the Electoral College prior to 1961? ______________
16.) Why didn’t Washington D.C. have any electoral votes prior to the 23rd Amendment? ______________________________________
17.) After the 23rd Amendment was ratified, how many electoral votes were given to Washington D.C.? ______________
Amendment 25 to the U.S. Constitution (ratified 1967) changes and expands Article II, Section 1. It came about
when Lyndon Johnson ascended to the presidency after John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. After Johnson
vacated the vice presidency to become president, there was no vice president for nearly 14 months. The first part
of the 25th Amendment addresses this potential problem. It states that should the office of vice president become
unoccupied for any reason (death, impeachment or resignation), then the president can nominate a new vice
president. This vice presidential nominee must then be approved by a simple majority (51%) of the Senate and
the House of Representatives. Prior to the presidency of Lyndon Johnson, numerous presidents had served the
remainder of their terms without vice presidents. As a matter of fact, in the 1800s, several vice presidents died
while in office and the position of vice president became vacant. These vacancies existed until the next election
and in several occasions there was no vice president for more than three years.
In 1974 President Richard Nixon resigned as president as he undoubtedly faced impeachment charges due to the Watergate Scandal.
His vice president of only eight months, Gerald Ford, inherited the presidency. In an ironic twist of fate, Ford had been appointed vice
president in order to fill the vacancy created when Nixon’s previous vice president, Spiro Agnew, resigned. To this date, Ford is the
only person to serve as president who was neither elected president nor vice president. Once Ford became president, again through
use of the 25th Amendment, he nominated Nelson Rockefeller to be his vice president. These examples of
presidents appointing new vice presidents proved that this part 25th Amendment was serving its purpose.
The second part of the 25th Amendment provides a system in which the vice president may temporarily serve
as “acting president” and assume the full presidential duties if the president becomes ill, incapacitated, or is
unable to perform his job for whatever reason. This procedure was exercised most recently in 2007 when
President George W. Bush underwent a medical procedure. During this time, Vice President Dick Cheney
assumed the presidential duties for over two hours. This situation demonstrated the success of the
25th Amendment to address situations in which presidents are temporarily unable to perform their duties.
Bush
Cheney
18.) For how long did Lyndon Johnson serve as president while the vice presidency was vacant? _________________________________
19.) How does a new vice president to take office if that position becomes vacant? ___________________________________________
20.) Explain the circumstances surrounding how Gerald Ford became president: _____________________________________________
21.) Under what conditions would a vice president serve as “acting president?” _____________________________________________
True/False Questions – Use information from the article to indicate whether each statement below is true or false.
______ 22. Since there was no winner in the Electoral College in the Election of 1800, the Senate selected the president.
______ 23. Presidential inactivity or poor leadership during the lame duck period may threaten the overall stability of our government.
______ 24. No person has ever served as U.S. president for more than ten years.
______ 25. A president who serves more than two years of another president’s term is eligible to be elected to two terms of their own.
______ 26. Before 1961, District of Columbia residents could vote for president although D.C. held no electors in the Electoral College.
______ 27. Gerald Ford is the only president who was neither elected president nor vice president.
______ 28. Dick Cheney served as acting president for several hours while President Bush was temporally unable to fulfill his duties.
Identification – Use the article to correctly identify each amendment described below.
______ 29. Which amendment allows the president to temporarily transfer powers to the vice president?
______ 30. Which amendment decreased the “lame duck” period in which presidents may be inactive prior to leaving office?
______ 31. Which amendment was created after there was a tie for the presidency?
______ 32. Which amendment granted the District of Columbia three electors in the Electoral College?
______ 33. Which amendment was written to limit a president’s length of service?
______ 34. Which amendment allows a new vice president to be appointed should the position become vacant for any reason?
______ 35. Which amendment redesigned how presidents and vice presidents are elected through the Electoral College?
______ 36. Which amendment changed the date which presidents are inaugurated?