American Government and Politics Today, Brief Edition, 2014-2015

358 APPendIx B • ConSTITUTIon of The UnITed STATeS

Amendment xII.

(Ratified on June 15, 1804—

election of the President)

The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and

vote by ballot for President and Vice­President, one of

whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same

State with themselves; they shall name in their ballots

the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots

the person voted for as Vice­President, and they shall

make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President,

and of all persons voted for as Vice­President, and of the

number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and

certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government

of the United States, directed to the President of the

Senate;—The President of the Senate shall, in the pres­

ence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open

all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted;—

The person having the greatest number of votes for

President, shall be the President, if such number be a

majority of the whole number of Electors appointed;

and if no person have such majority, then from the per­

sons having the highest numbers not exceeding three

on the list of those voted for as President, the House

of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot,

the President. But in choosing the President, the votes

shall be taken by States, the representation from each

State having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall

consist of a member or members from two­thirds of the

States, and a majority of all States shall be necessary

to a choice. [And if the House of Representatives shall

not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall

devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next

following, then the Vice­President shall act as President,

as in the case of the death or other constitutional dis­

ability of the President.]^13 —The person having the

greatest number of votes as Vice­President, shall be the

Vice­ President, if such number be a majority of the whole

number of Electors appointed, and if no person have a

majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list,

the Senate shall choose the Vice­President; a quorum for

the purpose shall consist of two­thirds of the whole num­

ber of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall

be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally

ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that

of Vice­President of the United States.

The original procedure set out for the election of president

and vice president in Article II, Section 1, resulted in a tie

in 1800 between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. It was

not until the next year that the House of Representatives

chose Jefferson to be president. This amendment changed

the procedure by providing for separate ballots for presi-

dent and vice president.

Amendment VII.

(Trial by Jury in Civil Cases)

In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy

shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall

be preserved, and no fact tried by jury, shall be other­

wise re­examined in any Court of the United States, than

according to the rules of the common law.

A jury trial may be requested by either party in a dispute

in any case involving more than $20. If both parties agree

to a trial by a judge without a jury, the right to a jury trial

may be put aside.

Amendment VIII.

(Bail, Cruel and Unusual Punishment)

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines

imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Bail is that amount of money that a person accused of a

crime may be required to deposit with the court as a guar-

antee that she or he will appear in court when requested.

The amount of bail required or the fine imposed as punish-

ment for a crime must be reasonable compared with the

seriousness of the crime involved. Any punishment judged

to be too harsh or too severe for a crime shall be prohibited.

Amendment Ix.

(The Rights Retained by the People)

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights,

shall not be construed to deny or disparage others

retained by the people.

Many civil rights that are not explicitly enumerated in the

Constitution are still held by the people.

Amendment x.

(Reserved Powers of the States)

The powers not delegated to the United States by the

Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are

reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Those powers not delegated by the Constitution to the fed-

eral government or expressly denied to the states belong to

the states and to the people. This amendment in essence

allows the states to pass laws under their “police powers.”

Amendment xI.

(Ratified on february 7, 1795—

Suits against States)

The Judicial power of the United States shall not be

construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, com­

menced or prosecuted against one of the United States

by Citizens of another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of

any Foreign State.

This amendment has been interpreted to mean that a state

cannot be sued in federal court by one of its own citizens, by

a citizen of another state, or by a foreign country. 13. Changed by the Twentieth Amendment.

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