Amendments to the U.S. Constitution

11th Amendment - 1795 First amendment created after the original ten (The

Bill of Rights)

Came after the decision in the court case Chisholm v. Georgia

Immunity of states from lawsuits by out-of-state citizens & foreigners not living within the state borders.

You cannot sue another state without their consent

12th Amendment - 1804

Changed how Presidents ran for office

Presidents & Vice Presidents were voted for separately which could result in president’s and vice president’s being from different parties

Ensured that the president and vice president were voted on independently from the other, making sure both positions went to candidates from the same party

13th Amendment - 1865

Came after the end of the Civil War

Abolished (got rid of) Slavery

Allows congress to create proper legislation to enforce the abolishment of slavery

Considered the first of three reconstruction amendments

14th Amendment - 1868

Proposed in response to issues related to former slaves

Citizenship is given to ANYONE born in the United States.

Equal protection under the law Eliminated 3/5ths Compromise Second of Three reconstruction

amendments Supreme Court case deciding

same-sex marriage will be based on this amendment.

15th Amendment - 1870

The government cannot deny the right to vote to citizens based on race, color, or previous servitude

Proposed by Republicans

Would not be fully imposed until the Voting Rights Act of 1965

Third of three reconstruction amendments

16th Amendment – 1913

Gave the federal government the right to levy an income tax

An income tax was authorized in 1894 and then found unconstitutional. In response to the verdict given by the Supreme Court, Congress created this amendment

Required by those who have earned any income throughout the previous year

Taxes are due on April 15th each year

17th Amendment - 1913

Direct election of Senators People in the states would elect the Senators instead of

them being appointed by the state legislatures like they had originally been under the original text in the Constitution

Considered a progressive amendment The Framers to the Constitution originally wanted state

legislatures to elect senators so that state governments could play a role in the federal government. This had led to many corrupt senators being chosen to

represent states in the U.S. Congress

18th Amendment - 1919

Came to be based on the Progressive Era and because many states in the U.S. had already enacted statewide prohibition

Prohibition – no making, selling, or purchasing alcohol. Thought consuming or private possession was not mentioned

Originally considered a progressive amendment

Due to this amendment the crime rate increased significantly.

19th Amendment - 1920 The government cannot deny the

right to vote based on gender Originally drafted in 1878 and was

sought to be included in the reconstruction amendments

Created in response to women’s rights advocates

In 1922 the Lesser v. Garnett Supreme Court case, the 19th amendment was upheld

Considered a progressive amendment

20th Amendment - 1933

Moved the Presidential inauguration from March 4 to January 20

Moved the terms of Congress from March 4 to January 3

Created to limit the “lame duck” period in office (where many feel the politician leaving the office has little influence)

It also stated what to do when there is no President-elect

21st Amendment - 1933

Repealed the 18th AmendmentAllowed alcoholCreated because the ratification

of the 18th amendment had lead to increased crime rates and was strongly opposed throughout the United States

22nd Amendment - 1951 Presidents can only be elected to two terms of office. Precedent was set by President Washington to serve

no more than two terms Only President to serve more than two terms was

Franklin D. Roosevelt Created after FDR died in office, a year after he was

elected to his fourth term Was created to ensure the executive office would not

gain too much power

23rd Amendment - 1961

Washington, D.C. is not a state therefore it was not given voting rights or representation

Amendment came in response to arguments that states with lower populations than D.C. could vote but they could not

Washington, D.C. is given 3 votes in the Electoral College.

They can vote for President.

24th Amendment - 1964

Several states tried to get around allowing African Americans to vote by requiring them to pay unaffordable amounts in order to practice their 15th amendment right, Congress created this amendment to combat this problem

Poll taxes are not allowed.

25th Amendment - 1967

If the President dies, the Vice President takes over.

Then he/she gets to select a new Vice President.

Came after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, in case the country were to see the loss of a President and Vice President

26th Amendment - 1971

18 year olds can vote! Came in response to

the Vietnam War. It did not seem fair that 18 year olds were being asked to serve their country but could not vote in elections

27th Amendment - 1992

Originally proposed in 1789Congress can give itself a raise, but

it won’t take effect until a new Congress starts. A new Congress takes place

every 2 years