Conventions within the states to ratify an amendment to U.S. Constitution
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Besides the more common method, Article V establishes the possibility of conventions within the individual states to ratify an amendment to the United States Constitution.
Article V reads, in pertinent part:
- The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths thereof, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress...
Use of the convention ratification option
In the history of the United States, this particular way of ratifying an officially proposed amendment was used only in the 1933 ratification process of the 21st Amendment. This is also the only case in which one constitutional amendment repealed another constitutional amendment—the 21st Amendment explicitly repealed the 18th Amendment (which had been ratified 14 years earlier).Apparent purpose of the alternative ratification procedure
Clearly, the framers of the Constitution wanted a means of sometimes bypassing the state legislatures in the ratification process. To some extent, the convention method of ratification loosely approximates a national referendum on a specific proposed constitutional amendment, thus allowing the sentiments of registered voters to be had on highly sensitive issues.However, that did not stop a stipulation in New Mexico state law that provides that members of that state's legislature would themselves make up such a convention, if Congress again selects that ratification method.
Limits and comparisons
A state ratifying convention has no modification or proposal powers. It may only debate upon, and then either approve or reject the proposed amendment, unlike a convention to propose amendment to U.S. Constitution.Also, such a ratifying convention is different from a constitutional convention as the second term has a very specific meaning: as a body assembled on a national basis for the clear purpose of writing an entirely new constitution for the country as a whole.
The U.S. Constitution, unlike of some of the states' constitutions, contains no specific provision for a national convention that would completely replace the existing constitution; however the convention called to propose amendments under Article V could theoretically propose (an) amendment(s) which would be tantamount to an entirely new constitution. It should be remembered that the present constitution was proposed by a convention originally called to do nothing more than to amend the Articles of Confederation. See Convention to propose amendment to U.S. Constitution
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