U.S. Constitution – Amendment 20 – The U.S. Constitution Online – USConstitution.net

Apr 23, 2024

—

U.S. Constitution – Amendment 20

Amendment 20 – Presidential, Congressional Terms

1. The terms of the President and Vice President shall
end at noon on the 20th day of January, and the terms of Senators and
Representatives at noon on the 3d day of January, of the years in which such
terms would have ended if this article had not been ratified; and the terms of
their successors shall then begin.

2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every
year, and such meeting shall begin at noon on the 3d day of January, unless
they shall by law appoint a different day.

3. If, at the time fixed for the beginning of the term of
the President, the President elect shall have died, the Vice President elect
shall become President. If a President shall not have been chosen before the
time fixed for the beginning of his term, or if the President elect shall have
failed to qualify, then the Vice President elect shall act as President until a
President shall have qualified; and the Congress may by law provide for the
case wherein neither a President elect nor a Vice President elect shall have
qualified, declaring who shall then act as President, or the manner in which
one who is to act shall be selected, and such person shall act accordingly
until a President or Vice President shall have qualified.

4. The Congress may by law provide for the case of the
death of any of the persons from whom the House of Representatives may choose a
President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them, and for
the case of the death of any of the persons from whom the Senate may choose a
Vice President whenever the right of choice shall have devolved upon them.

5. Sections 1 and 2 shall take effect on the 15th day of
October following the ratification of this article.

6. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have
been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of
three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its
submission.

Notes for this amendment:
Proposed 3/2/1932
Ratified 1/23/1933
History
Article 1, Section 4
Article 2, Section 1

<<Back
| Table of Contents |
Next>>

Last Modified: 24 Jan 2010

Valid HTML 4.0