Twentieth Amendment To The United States Constitution - History

History

Section 1 of the amendment reduced the amount of time between Election Day and the beginning of Presidential, Vice Presidential and Congressional terms. Originally, the terms of the President, the Vice President and the incoming Congress began on March 4, four months after the elections were held. While this lapse was a practical necessity at the end of the 18th century, when any newly-elected official might require several months to put his affairs in order and then undertake an arduous journey from his home to the national capital, it eventually had the effect of impeding the functioning of government in the modern age.

From the early 19th century onward, it also meant that a lame duck Congress or Presidential administration could fail to adequately respond to a significant national crises in a timely manner. Each institution could do this on the theory that at best, a lame duck Congress or administration had neither the time nor the mandate to tackle problems. Whereas the incoming administration or Congress would have both the time, and a fresh electoral mandate, to examine and address the problems that the nation faced. These problems very likely would have been at the center of the debate of the just completed election cycle.

This dilemma was seen most notably in 1861 and 1933, after the elections of Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt, respectively, plus the newly elected Senators and Representatives. Under the Constitution at the time, these presidents had to wait four months before they, and the incoming Congresses, could deal with the secession of Southern states and the Great Depression respectively.

Originally, under Article I, Section 4, Clause 2, the Congress was required to convene at least once each year on the first Monday in December. That requirement created a mandatory lame duck session following each federal election. Section 2 of the amendment changed this required convening to January 3.

The amendment was ratified on January 23, 1933. Pursuant to Section 5 of the amendment, the changes embodied in Sections 1 and 2 took effect on October 15, 1933. This delay resulted in the first meeting of the 73rd Congress, along with the inauguration of President Roosevelt and Vice President John N. Garner, taking place on March 4, 1933.

On February 15, 1933, 23 days after this amendment was ratified, President-elect Franklin D. Roosevelt was the target of an unsuccessful assassination attempt by Giuseppe Zangara. If the attempt had been successful then, pursuant to Section 3 of the amendment, Vice President-elect John N. Garner would have become President on March 4, 1933.

The first Congressional terms to begin under Section 1 were those of the 74th Congress, on January 3, 1935. The first Presidential and Vice Presidential terms to begin under Section 1 were those of President Roosevelt and Vice President Garner, on January 20, 1937.

Because of this amendment, if the Electoral College fails to resolve who will be the President or Vice President, the incoming Congress, as opposed to the outgoing one, would choose who would occupy the unresolved office or offices.